LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

University  of  California. 


Class 


ON    SAFARI 


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{y'Z/€yi/<7i?^e<i?y. 


ON    SAFARI 

BIG-GAME    HUNTING    IN 
BRITISH      EAST     AFRICA 

WITH    STUDIES    IN    BIRD-LIFE 


BY 

ABEL    CHAPMAN 

AUTHOR    OF 

BIRD-LIFE    OF    THE    BORDERS    ON    MOORLAND    AND    SEA  '    (TWO    EDITIONS) 

'  WILD    NORWAY  '    AND    '  WILD    SPAIN  ' 


WITH    170  ILLUSTRATIONS 

BY   THE  AUTHOR    AND    E.    CALDWELL 

SKETCH-MAPS    AND    PHOTOGRAPHS 


a        It 

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'...  A  !..::•  •.•:^:  •::••• 


NEW    YORK 

LONGMANS,    GREEN    &    CO. 

London:    EDWARD    ARNOLD 

1908 

[A//  Rights  Resei-ved\ 


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PREFACE 

Should  the  title  of  this  work  convey  no  significance, 
the  fact  wonlcl  show  that  there  yet  remains  "  Something 
new  from  Africa."  That  Arabic  term  "Safari"  has  no 
precise  equivalent  in  our  British  tongue,  yet  is  in  daily 
use  throughout  British  territories  six  times  larger  than 
the  home  islands.  Hence  I  venture  to  introduce  it  to 
our  common  language.  Its  interpretation  will  presently 
become  clear  to  those  who  read  this  book. 

British  East  Africa  forms  no  inconsiderable  asset  of 
the  Empire.  It  has  involved  the  investment  of  several 
millions  of  our  national  funds,  and  it  possesses  a  future 
that  should  be  described  as  potential  rather  than  assured 
—  none  the  worse  for  that.  At  the  moment,  this  Colouy 
of  yesterday  consists  chiefly  of  virgin  hunting-grounds, 
as  yet  largely  unknown  and  unexplored  save  by  a  handful 
of  pioneers  and  big-game  hunters. 

Any  sound  and  carefully-prepared  work — whatever 
its  point  of  view — that  brings  this  new  outlet  more 
clearly  under  the  public  eye,  is  therefore  doing  a  service. 

Compare  these  respective  British  areas — 

Square  Miles.  White  Population. 

Canada        .         .         .         3,750,000  .  6,500,000 

Australia     .         .         .         3,290,000  .  4,120,000 

British  South  Africa    .         1,239,000  .  1,130,000 

British  East  Africa     .  750,000  .  3,000 

British  Islands    .         .  121,000  .  44,000,000 

The  present  work  treats  exclusively  of  the  Faunal 
aspects  of  British  Equatoria,  and  especially  of  its  Big 
Game,  Suffice  it  as  evidencino;  the  wealth  of  the 
Colony  in  the  latter  respect,  to  say  that  the  author  and 
his  brother  in  two  expeditions  obtained  specimens  of 
thirty-four  diiferent  species — or,  including  South  Africa, 


226453 


vi  PREFACE 

a  total  of  upwards  of  Jifty  distinct  varieties  of  big  game 
in  three  trips.  This  compares  w\t\\  fourteen  species,  the 
net  result  of  many  years'  strenuous  hunting  in  Europe. 
And,  quite  recently,  three  Spanish  friends  have  returned 
from  British  East  Africa  with  a  total  of  thirty-five 
species  secured  in  a  single  season. 

The  antelope-tribe  alone  counts  upwards  of  forty 
members — from  elands  of  2000  lbs.  to  dikdiks  of  under 
ten ;  then  there  are  the  beasts  of  prey,  the  three 
great  pachyderms,  giraffes  and  zebras,  buffaloes,  and  a 
mixed  multitude  besides.  Beyond  all  stand  out  on  the 
hunter's  horizon  the  elephant  and  the  lion.  These 
two  constitute  his  supreme  triumph,  being  not  only  the 
most  difficult  to  encounter,  but  the  most  dangerous  to 
attack. 

Then  these  equatorial  forests  shelter  two  great  wild 
animals,  to  the  full  as  interesting  as  the  much-discussed 
okajji,  yet  practically  unknown,  to  wit : — that  splendid 
bovine  antelope  the  Bongo,  a  bull  of  which  has  never 
yet  fallen  by  white  hunter's  hand ;  and  the  Giant 
Forest-hog  (Jlylochcerus),  a  first  example  of  which  has, 
I  hear,  been  obtained  while  these  sheets  are  in  Press. 

The  author's  companion  throughout  nearly  the  whole 
of  his  East-African  wanderings  was  his  brother,  Walter 
Ingram  Chapman,  with  whom  he  had  previously  com- 
pleted many  hunting-trips,  chiefl}^  in  Nortljern  Europe, 
Newfoundland,  etc. 

The  illustrations  are  drawn  almost  exclusively  from 
rough  sketches  made  by  the  author  in  Africa — some  on 
the  actual  scene,  others  in  camp  immediately  thereafter 
while  impression  remained  vivid  on  the  mental  retina. 
To  ensure  a  hio;her  level  of  artistic  excellence  in  re- 
production,  the  aid  was  invoked  of  Mr.  E.  Caldwell, 
himself  fresh  from  a  year  spent  among  African  game. 
His  skilled  and  patient  collaboration,  extending  over 
several  months,  has  evolved  this  series  of  drawings,  that 
faithfully  depict  in  life  many  of  the  most  magnificent 
wild  beasts  that  to-day  remain  existent.  That  none 
more  true  have  ever  before  appeared  on  paper  is  the 


PREFACE  vii 

author's  honest  conviction,  and  that  opinion  he  has 
backed  by  illustrating  this  work  on  a  scale  which,  he  is 
told,  is  not  warranted  in  books  of  this  description. 

A  number  of  the  author's  own  sketches  have  also 
been  inserted — especially  of  birds.  These  are  naturally 
rougher,  being  merely  amateur  work. 

In  attempting  a  rude  sketch  of  the  bird-life  of  this 
little-known  Ethiopian  region,  the  author  may  perhaps 
have  been  too  bold.  The  splendid  assistance  rendered 
him,  both  in  Africa  and  at  home,  by  friends  who 
represent  the  first  authority  on  the  subject,  to  wit,  Mr. 
F.  J.  Jackson,  C.B.,  Lieut. -Governor  of  British  East 
Africa,  and  Mr.  W.  R.  Ogilvie-Grant,  has  encouraged 
this  inclusion  of  his  rough  ornithological  notes.  They 
are,  at  least,  the  first  that  have  hitherto  been  attempted 
in  a  popular  sense.  As  such,  they  may  prove  useful  to 
travellers,  sportsmen  and  colonists — as  well  as  to  the 
lay  bird-loving  public — to  all  of  whom  the  purely 
scientific  works  on  this  subject  (though  they  represent 
altogether  admirable  labour  and  research)  are  utterly 
incomprehensible. 

In  conclusion  : — British  East  Africa  affords  to-day 
probably  the  most  glorious  hunting-field  extant, 
certainly  the  most  accessible,  and  this  book  may 
suggest  to  some  an  expedition  thereto.  They  will  not 
be  disappointed.  No  very  special  personal  qualifications 
are  required.  Neither  the  author  nor  his  brother  were 
skilled  in  African  hunting,  and  the  former,  it  may  per- 
tinently be  added,  had  already  long  passed  the  half- 
century  before  first  setting  foot  in  Equatoria.  Naturally 
an  insioiit  into  the  rudiments  of  huntino-craft,  tooether 
with  reasonable  rifle-practice  (since  ranges  in  Africa 
average  double  those  customary  elsewhere),  are  among 
the  essentials. 

Abel  Chapman. 

Houxty,  Wark, 
Xorthum  herland. 
August  1908. 


CONTENTS 


CHAP. 

I.       AFRICA SOUTH    AND    EAST  :    INTRODUCTORY 

II.       THE    EQUATORIAL     TRENCH (l)     HUNTING    IN    THE    RIFT 

VALLEY    (eBURU    TO    THE    ENDERIT    RIVER) 

III.  THE   EQUATORIAL   TRENCH (ll)   ON  THE    ENDERIT  RIVER 

AND    LAKE    NAKURU    .... 

IV.  A    LION-DRIVE   ON    LAKE   NAKURU 
V.       A    TWELFTH    ON    THE    EQUATOR NAKURU    TO    BARINGO 

VI.  AFTER    ELEPHANT    AT    BARINGO    . 

VII.  BEYOND    BARINGO — (l)    AFTER    ORYX    AND    ELAND 
VIII.  „  „  (ll)    TWO    RHINOS 

IX.  ,,  „  (ill)    ORYX,     ELAND,     IMPALA,     JACK 

son's  hartebeest,  dikdik,  etc. 
x.     on  safari a  sketch  of  camp-life  in  british  east 

AFRICA  ..... 

XI.       ELMENTEITA — (l)    IN    SEPTEMBER 
XII.  „  (ll)    IN    FEBRUARY 

XIII.  ELEPHANTS  ..... 

XIV.  HUNTING    ON    LAKE    SOLAI (l)    CHANCE    OR    SKILL'? 

XV.  „  ,,  ,,  (ll)   WATERBUCK,  WILD-DOGS 

WART-HOG    AND    RHINOS    (RETURN    TO    NAKURU) 

XVI.       THE    MAU    FOREST AFTER    BUFFALO    AT    KISHOBO 

XVII.       THE  ATHI  PLAINS (l)    FLYING  VISIT  IN  SEPTEMBER  1904 

XVIII.       A    MONTH     ON    THE    ATHI    RIVER (ll)    IN    JANUARY    AND 

FEBRUARY     1906  .  .  .  .  . 


PAGE 


18 
40 
48 
62 
73 
91 

97 

110 
121 
133 
151 
165 

175 

186 
201 

208 


IX 


CONTENTS 


XIX.       ON    THE    STOXY    ATHI    (JANUARY — FEBRUARY    1906) 

XX.       HUNTING    ON    THE    SIMBA    RIVER 

XXI.       THE    UNSEEN    WORLD        .... 

XXII.       BIG    GAME    AND    ITS    BIRD-PROTECTORS      . 

XXIII.       FASCICULA — (l)    RETROSPECTIVE 

(ll)    DANGER 

(ill)    SNAKES 

(iv)    THE    SAFARI 

XXIV.       STRAY    NOTES    ON    EAST-AFRICAN   GAME    . 

XXV.       PROTECTION   OF    BIG    GAME    (SPECIALLY    IN    RELATION   TO 
BRITISH    EAST    AFRICA) 

APPENDIX ROUGH   VELD-NOTES    ON    BIRD-LIFE    IN    BRITISH    EAST 

AFRICA      ...... 

INDEX  ....... 


225 


237 

258 
266 

277 
278 
280 
283 

287 

295 

303 
337 


LIST   OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 


{Photogravure)  Frontispiece 


OVERLOOKED 

SING-SIN'G  WATERBUCK  BULL  .... 
GREY  PHANTOMS  OF  THE  ROCKS  (cHANLER's  REEDBUCKs) 
SUNBIRDS  ...... 

MASAI  WARRIORS  ....  To  face  p. 

SKETCH-MAP    OF    COUNTRY    FROM    EBURU    TO    NAKURU 
SPOTTED    HYENA  ..... 

HEAD    OP    HELMETED    GUINEA-FOWL 

CROWNED  hornbill  {Lophoceros  melanoleucits) . 

DRONGO  ...... 

ASSEMBLING    OF    THE    CAllNIVORA  .  .  To  face  p 

"  GAZING    IN    THE    WRONG    DIRECTION  "    (wATERBUCK) 

WOUNDED    WATERBUCK     ..... 

NOONTIDE     ON     ENDERIT     RIVER — LAKE    NAKURU    AND    CRATER    OF 
MENINGAI    IN    BACKGROUND  .  .  To  face  p 

grant's    GAZELLES 

"WHILE    I    HELD    AN    EMPTY   GUN "    (lEOPARD) 

MASAI    CATTLE-BELL    PICKED    UP    ON    ENDERIT 

WART-HOG  .... 

GREY    LOURY         .... 

IMPALA  ..... 

HUNTING-KNIFE    SHEATHED    IN    SKIN    FROM    AN    IMPALa's    PASTERN 

HEADS  OF  Neumann's  hartebeest 

GOLIATH    HERON 

AFRICAN    JABIRU,    OR    SADDLE-BILL 

FIRST    GLIMPSE    OF    A    LION 

LIONESSES    RIGHT    AND    LEFT 

SAVAGES    DANCING    AROUND    DEAD    LIONESSES 

DEAD    LIONESS     .... 

xi 


PAGE 

8 
11 
12 
12 
U 
15 
16 
17 
18 
20 
22 
23 

24 
25 
27 
28 
30 
31 
32 
35 
36 
37 
39 
41 
45 
46 
47 


Xll 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 


king  whydah-finches  . 
Jackson's  hartebeest,  bull     . 
ostriches  .... 

head  of  east-african  reedbuck 
social  weaver-finch    . 
coucal,  or  bush-cuckoo 
aard-vaark       .... 
NAMAQUA  DOVE  {(Una  capensis) 

BARBET ..... 

A    MOUSE-GREY    COLY    (CoUus)    AT    NJEMPS 

WEAVER-FINCHES'    NESTS 

NEARLY    CAUGHT  ....  To  face  p. 

SKETCH-JIAP    OF    BARINGO 

LAKE    BARINGO    FROM    NORTH-EAST  .  .  To  face  p 

KORI    BUSTARD    . 

GIANT  FOREST-HOG  {Hylochcerus  nieinertzhage7ii) 

GIRAFFE    BULL    AT    BARINGO 

"  BEYOND    THE    LOW    ALOES "    (ORYX) 

HORNS    OF    GAZELLES 

IMPALA  . 

ORYX       . 

GAZELLES 

TURK  AN  A  .....  To  face  p 

KERIO    RIVER    RUNNING    TOWARDS    LAKE    RUDOLPH  To  face  p 

A   TROOP    OF    ORYX,    MIGRATING — BARINGO,    AUGUST    31,    1904 

To  face  p 

DIAGRAM    SHOWING    CONFIGURATION    OF    THE    BARINGO    PLAINS 


To  face  p 
To  face  p. 
To  face  p 
To  face  p 

To  face  p 

To  face  p 

WHITE-BROWED      COUCAL,     OR     BUSH-CUCKOO      {CetXtropuS    SUper- 

ciliostis)     ...... 


SOURCES    OF    THE    SUGOTA    RIVER 

SUK    WARRIORS    IN    THE    FORT   AT    BARINGO 

IN    THE    SUK    COUNTRY     .... 

ELANDS  ...... 

east-african  bush-pigs 

Jackson's  hartebeests — on  the  mold  river  . 

PURPLE-CROWNED  COUCAL  {Centrop)us  monachus) 

a    safari    ON    THE    MARCH 


PAGE 

50 
52 

54 
55 

58 
59 
60 
61 
64 
65 
67 
68 
75 
76 
77 
80 
82 
83 
87 
88 
89 
90 
92 
92 

98 
100 
100 
102 
102 
10-t 
106 
108 
109 
110 

112 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

AARD-WOLF  ...... 

SAVAGES    LOOTING    "  HIGH  "    RHINO  ... 

SOMALI    HUNTERS    IN    MIDDAY    UNDRESS     .  .  To  face  p 

SAFARI    AWAITING    THE    ORDER    TO    START NAIROBI  To  face  p 

HEAD    OF    WHITE-BEARDED    GNU    .... 
BEYOND    BARINGO TURKANA    CAMELS    GRAZING    UNTENDED 

To  face  p 
Neumann's  hartebeests  .... 

STRIPED    hyena  ..... 

tawny  eagle    ...... 

A     corner     of     the     crowd — MASSED     GAME     NEAR     ELMENTEITA 

(sept.   1904)  ....  To  face  p 

SING-SING    WATERBUCK     ..... 

LAKE      ELMENTEITA       FROM      THE      NORTH-EAST ^^LOOKING      D0W^ 

KARRIENDOOS    VALLEY    TOWARDS    EBURU  .  To  face  p) 

chanler's  reedbuck  (female) 

hippos    IN    LAKE    ELMENTEITA      .... 
"faced    round    IN    THE    MOONLIGHT*'    (rHINO)    . 

RHINO    BULL AS    HE    FELL  .  .  .  To  face  p 

THE    THREE-HORNED    RHINO'S    HEAD  .  .  To  face  J) 

SACRED    IBIS  ...... 

AN  AFRICAN  LARK,  OR  "  LONG-CLAW  "  [Macronyx  croceus) 

DAY-DAWN    ON    LAKE    ELMENTEITA 

FLAMINGOES    FLIGHTING  ..... 

EXECUTORS         .  .  .  {Photogravure)  To  face  p 

STERNUM    OF    OSTRICH       ..... 

PUFF-ADDER  ...... 

SKETCH-MAP  OF  SOLAI,   ILLUSTRATING  OPERATION  WITH  ELEPHANTS 

ENVELOPED         .....  To  face  p. 

"turned    on    us    WITH    COCKED    BARS    AND    UPRAISED    TRUNK*' 

"  COLLAPSED    STERN-FIRST  "  . 

FURTHER    ADVANCE    DANGEROUS — PRIZE    ABANDONED    TO    ENEMY 


dead  elephant  bull   . 

bull  elephant  eight  yards  long 

Walter's  big  bull 

ADIEU  !  . 


To  face  p 

To  face  p. 
To  face  p. 


Xlll 

PAGE 

.13 
.16 
.18 
.18 
[20 

[20 
.23 
[25 
[30 

L30 
.32 

[34 

[36 

[38 
[40 
140 
[40 

[42 
.45 
[47 
[48 
[49 
[50 
153 
[56 
[58 
159 
[60 

[60 
[61 
[62 
[62 
[64 


XIV 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 


w- 


AND  DEAD  ELEPHANT 


ELEPHANT  S  EAR 

WATERBUCK  BULL 

ELAND  BULL 

A    CHARGE    OF    THE    HEAVIES 

"  SPOILING    FOR   A    FIGHT  "    (rHINO) 

BUSH-SHRIKE  {Bvyoscopus  nandensis) 

A    PACK    OF    WILD-DOGS   . 

WILD-DOG    WITH    TWO    SPOTTED    HYENAS 

RHINO FROM    LIFE 

SLEEPING    BEAUTIES  ..... 

"  THOROUGHLY    NASTY " . 

BRINGING    HOME    THE    IVORY  .... 

WHYDAH-FINCHES  {Penthetria  ardens)    . 

HEAD    OF    BUFFALO  ..... 

A    HORNBILL    OF    THE    MAU    FOREST 

TRUMPETER   HORNBILL     ..... 
A    HORNBILL    OF    SOTIK    ..... 

A  TOURACO  OF  SOTIK  {GalUrex  chlorochlamys)  . 

A    TINY    WOODPECKER        ..... 

GREAT    GROUND-HORNBILLS,    ALARMED    BY    A    PASSING    EAGLE 

ANOTHER   HORNBILL    {Lophoceros) 

HORNBILLS    ON    WING         ..... 

THE    SENTRY — WHITE-BEARDED    GNUS 

"  CLEARED    OUT  "  DO.  . 

PENNANT-WINGED    NIGHTJAR  .  .  .  • 


To  face  p 
To  face  p 


To  face  p 


To  face  p 
To  face  p. 


LOST    BY    A    LENGTH 
VIS-A-VIS 
SCOPS    CAPENSIS 
BOLTING    LIONS  . 


-HAWK-EAGLE    AND    GUINEA-FOWL 


THE    AUTHOR    ON    "  GOLDFINCH  " 


DAYBREAK      ON 
DRINK 


THE 


To  face  p 
To  face  p. 

ATHI      RIVER GAME      COMING      DOWN      TO 

To  face  p 

A    TROPICAL    POOL    ON    ATHI    RIVER  ... 

HAAiMBR-HEAD  {Scopus  umbretta)  ... 

THE    DACE    (Leuciscus)    OF    ATHI 

GIRAFFES  ...... 


PAGE 

[66 

L66 

L67 

.68 

.70 

.71 

L74 

L76 

78 

78 

79 

[80 

[82 

[85 

l87 

[90 

[92 

[93 

[94 

,96 

[97 

[99 

200 

203 

20.5 

211 

212 

213 

213 

2U 

214 

216 
218 
220 
222 
223 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 


XV 


EAGLES    STOOPING  .  .  .  • 

HARTEBEEST    PILOTIXG    BRINDLED    GNUS    TO    WATER 

HOODED    COBRA  {Ncija  hoje) 

SPOTTED    HYENA  .... 

BRINDLED    GNU,    BULL — STONY    ATHI 

SECRETARY  (Secvetarius  serpentarius)    . 

HOODED  COBRA  ..... 
ZEBRA  ON  STONY  ATHI  .... 
TWO  WEAVER-FINCHES  IN   BLACK  AND  GOLD  {Hyphailtomis  textor, 


To  face  p. 

To  face  p. 
To  face  p. 

To  face  p. 

To  face  p. 


Pi/romelana  iaha)  ..... 

WOOD-HOOPOE  {Irrisor  erythrorhynchus) 

PORTERS    BRINGING    IN    RHINO    HEAD  .... 

SILHOUETTED    AGAINST    THE    LOW-RISING    SUN    (lION) 

LILAC-BREASTED  ROLLER  {Coracias  cauclutus)     . 
A  PAIR  OF  BISHOP-BIRDS  {Pyromclana  sundevalli) 

NESTS    OF    WEAVER-FINCHES    ON    THE    SIMBA    RIVER 

A    HORNBILL    ON    SIMBA    RIVER    (PROBABLY    LophoCCVOS  fasciatus) 

GIRAFFES    ON    ATHI    RIVER  .  .  .  To  faCC  p. 

HEADS    OF    coke's    HARTEBEEST (mALES) 

AARD-VAARK SKETCHED    IN    BERGEN    MUSEUM 

CIVET      ..... 
RATEL     ..... 
WHITE-BEARDED    GNU 
HONEY-GUIDE        .... 

HEAD     OF     NESTLING    Indicator    variegatus    (scaly-throated 

honey-guide)    SHOWING    THE    "  FORCEPS  "    ON    MANDIBLES     . 

"go-'way  birds"  (Turacus  corythaix) 

TURACUS   CONCOLOR  .... 

SOCIABLE  SHRIKE  {Urolestcs  melanoleucus) 

SABLE    ANTELOPE    ALARMED    BY    BIRD-WARNING       . 
TURACUS    CORYTHAIX         .  .  .  ■ 

TROPHIES    AT    BARINGO — SHOT    BY    G.    F.    ARCHER 
GREEN    MAMBAS .... 
"  GOLDFINCH  "    AND    HIS    NEW    OWNER 
OUR     HEADMAN    (ON     EXTREME     RIGHT),    ELMI    TO    AUTHOR's    LEFT, 
ENOCH     BEHIND     HIM,     DEAD     LIONESS     IN     FRONT     ESCAPED 

CAMERA       .....  To  face  p. 


To  face  p. 

•  • 

To  face  p. 


PAGE 

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228 
229 
232 
2.32 
234 
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236 

242 
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254 
261 
262 
263 
265 
267 

270 
271 
272 
273 

274 
276 

278 
282 
284 


284 


XVI 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 


MY   FIRST   VIEW   OF   A   SABLE    BULL,  "JUMPED  UP   WITH   A   SNORT  "  291 

LESSER  KOODOO              ....           To  face  p.  292 

AN    18  ft.    python    with    WATERBUCK    calf    IT    HAD    KILLED 

To  face  p.  292 

CROWNED    CRANE  .  ,  .  .  .  .312 

KING  Leopold's  touraco  {Gymnoschizorhis  hopoldi)    .             .  326 

emin's  babbler  {Cratewpus  emini,  $  )              .              .              .  328 

DIAGRAM  illustrating  FLIGHT  OF  Mirafra  fischeri      .             .  333 

A   WEAVER             .......  334 


<h< 


ON    SAFARI 

CHAPTER  I 

AFRICA— SOUTH  AND  EAST 
INTRODUCTORY 

South  Africa  when  the  world  was  young — that  is, 
when  we  were  young — represented  to  those  who  had 
inherited  an  adventurous  spirit,  and  in  whose  brea.st  a 
love  of  the  wild  was  innate,  something  that  approached 
the  acme  of  terrestrial  joys.  Thereaway,  our  earlier 
lessons  had  taught  that,  co-existent  with  the  humdrum 
monotony  of  a  work-a-day  world,  there  yet  survived 
a  vast  continent  still  absolutely  unknown  and  unsub- 
dued by  man,  and  across  whose  vacant  space  there 
sprawled,  inscribed  in  burning  letters  on  the  map, 
that  vocal  word,  "Unexplored." 

To  no  subsequent  generation,  as  this  world  is 
geologically  constituted,  can  a  similar  condition  ever 
recur. 

To  such  temperaments  as  indicated  the  rough,  free 
intangible  life  on  an  unknown  veld,  surrounded  by 
savao-e  Nature,  and  with  its  concomitants  of  self-reliance 
and  self-resource,  of  difficulty,  and  sometimes  of  danger, 
appealed  to  the  verge  of — and,  in  some  cases,  beyond — 
the  limits  of  self-restraint.  The  contemporary  writings 
of  Cornwallis  Harris,  of  Baldwin  and  of  Gordon  Gum- 
ming were  read  and  re-read  till  almost  known  by  heart. 
They  fired  boyish  imagination  ;  but  in  my  case  circum- 
stances forbade  such  realisation,  since  success  comes 
more  surely  to  the  plodder  than  to  the  adventurer. 

B 


'2  •    .       ON   SAFARI 

A  book  that  fascinated  in  only  less  degree  was 
Hawker,  and  for  five-and-twenty  years  I  followed  "  the 
Colonel"  in  what  certainly  represents  the  hardest  and 
most  strenuous  form  of  wild  sport  that  is  attainable 
within  our  British  Isles — that  of  wildfowling  afloat. 

Then,  after  a  cjuarter  of  a  century,  when  there  came 
at  length  opportunity  to  visit  the  far-aw^ay  veld  of 
South  Africa,  already  its  long-dreamt  charm  had  faded. 
During  the  second  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  the 
erewhiles  wondrous  fauna  of  the  sub-continent  had 
steadily,  incredibly  melted  away  before  Boer  breech- 
loaders.^ 

It  was  in  May  1899  that  the  author  first  landed  in 
South  Africa — in  those  days  of  deep  anxiety  and  unrest 
that  soon  afterwards  culminated  in  war.  There  still 
roamed  then  on  the  broad  bush-veld  that  lies  towards 
the  Limpopo  the  superb  sable  and  roan  antelopes,  the 
koodoo,  tsesseby  and  brindled  gnu,  waterbuck  and 
many  more.  The  elephant,  it  is  true,  had  finally  disap- 
peared ;  so  had  the  rhino,  buff"alo,  girafi"e  and  eland — all 
of  these  abundant  but  a  generation  before. 

The  first-named,  however,  all  survived  in  some 
numbers,  together  with  smaller  antelopes  which,  if  less 
imposing,  are  no  less  graceful.  To  have  seen  these 
mamificent  wild  beasts  in  their  haunts,  and  to  have 
secured  specimens  of  most — that,  at  least,  was  something 
efi'ected.  It  was,  nevertheless,  with  a  certain  undefined 
sense  of  disappointment — or,  at  any  rate,  of  aspirations 
not  fully  realised — that,  after  four  months  on  the  veld, 
I  turnecl  homewards.  The  circumstance  and  condition 
of  wild-life  had  perceptibly  changed.  These  were  no 
longer  purely  pristine.  They  had  lost  that  ineffable 
original  charm  of  which  I  had  read,  and  which  it  had  been 

1  Though  the  Boers,  being  the  most  numerous,  were  the  chief 
instruments  of  slaughter,  yet  other  settlers  were  only  less  to  blame 
in  the  proportion  of  their  numbers.  The  Boers,  moreover,  never 
permitted  the  aboriginal  natives  to  possess  firearms ;  and  this,  in 
other  tex-ritories  (especially  Portuguese),  has  been  a  deadly  source  of 
destruction. 


AFEICA— SOUTH   AND   EAST  3 

my  hope  to  see  for  myself.  I  voyaged  homewards — 
forced  by  the  war  to  the  long  sea  route  by  Mozambique 
and  Madagascar — oppressed  by  a  brooding  sentiment 
that  I  had  lived  too  late,  that  those  glorious  scenes 
described  by  old-time  pioneers  had  vanished  for  ever 
from  the  face  of  the  earth. 

These  gloomy  forebodings  have  fortunately  proved 
baseless — have  been  scattered  to  the  four  winds  by  events 
that  followed.  South  Africa  as  a  virgin  hunting-field 
exists  no  longer ;  yet  such  spectacles  of  wild-life  as  fifty 
years  ago  adorned  its  veld  and  karoo,  with  all  the  glory 
of  a  pristine  fauna  every  whit  as  rich,  may  yet  be 
enjoyed  elsewhere  in  that  vast  continent.  It  is  no 
longer  to  the  regions  beyond  the  Zambesi  that  the 
hunter  must  turn  attention — those  regions  where  Mr. 
Selous  in  my  own  time  (since  we  were  at  Rugby  together 
in  the  'sixties)  has  earned  pre-eminence  among  naturalist- 
hunters  of  all  ages.  No,  the  centre  of  attraction  has 
shifted  northwards,  far  northward — to  the  British  terri- 
tories that  lie  around  the  equator.  There  some  of 
Nature's  wildest  scenes,  practically  unchanged  since  the 
days  of  creation,  may  yet  be  enjoyed.  More  than  that. 
These  new  regions  are  accessible  as  South  Africa  never 
was  at  its  zenith ;  for  these  new  hunting-grounds  are 
reached  by  steam  all  the  way,  on  land  and  sea — a  simple 
three- weeks'  journey  by  ocean  liner  and  corridor  train. 

That  this  renewal  of  virgin  conditions  which,  it 
seemed,  had  disappeared  for  ever,  should,  after  all, 
have  been  renewed  to  another  century,  followed  on  the 
opening-up  of  the  Uganda  railw\ay.  That  narrow  ribbon 
of  steel  (though  it  never  reaches  Uganda)  pierces  for 
600  miles  the  heart  of  Equatorial  Africa.  After  leaving 
behind  the  coastal  belt  of  forest  and  swamp,  it  sur- 
mounts a  6,000-foot  mountain-range  and  traverses  all 
the  vast  tablelands  beyond,  afibrding  a  tropical  pano- 
rama that  must  be  seen  to  be  believed.  Never  before, 
nor  ever  again  (it  is  safe  to  say)  will  there  be  pre- 
sented to  the  view  of  casual  passenger  such  spectacles 
as  to-day  attend  each  train  on  that  Uganda  railway. 


4  ON  SAFAEI 

Countless  herds  of  h'm  wild  beasts  feed  within  sioht  of 
carriage  windows — brindled  gnu  and  zebra,  hartebeests 
and  gazelles,  with  other  antelopes  great  and  small, 
giraffes  and  ostriches,  even,  by  chance,  a  glimpse  of 
rhino,  buffalo  or  lion.     But  all  that  is  a  thrice-told  tale. 

It  is  that  unique  railway,  and  the  guiding  star  that 
led  me  thereto,  that  are  the  fons  et  origo  of  this  book. 

Far-seeing  and  inspired  was  the  genius  that  devised 
that  line  and  (with  the  courage  of  conviction)  carried 
out  the  scheme  in  face  of  the  cheap  rhetoric  and  narrow 
horizons  of  the  hour,  bounded  to  thousands  by  the 
corner  of  the  street.  Although,  for  the  present,  that 
wild  fauna  is  actually  a  chief  asset  of  our  East- African 
colony,  and  the  big-game  hunter  is  to-day  its  most 
profitable  customer,  it  is  nevertheless  no  mere  fantastic 
dream  that  pictures  the  ecjuatorial  highlands  settled -up 
within  measurable  period  by  British  farmers  and  graziers, 
the  game  displaced  by  flocks  and  herds,  and  Mombasa 
competing  with  Argentina  and  the  Antipodes  for  the 
meat-supply  of  the  Mother-land. 

Save  incideutallv,  such  matters  do  not  here  concern 
us.  A  feature  that  gratifies  sportsman  and  nature-lover 
alike  is  the  treatment  of  the  game  in  the  British  Pro- 
tectorate. The  Game-ordinances  may  not  be  ideal,  nor 
their  execution  all  we  could  wish,  but  they  are  essen- 
tially practical,  and  evince  both  a  wise  foresight  and 
a  policy  that  has  raised  the  whole  plane  of  sport,  as 
practised  in  British  territories,  to  a  level  that  has  never 
elsewhere  obtained  in  the  Dark  Continent. 

Throughout  South  Africa  hardly  even  the  elementary 
significance  of  our  British  term  "  sport"  was  ever  under- 
stood or  thought  of.  AVith  some  notable  exceptions,  the 
mounted  rifleman  of  the  south,  with  his  after-rider  and 
repeating  Mauser,  was  merely  a  butcher,  a  hunter  of 
hides  and  meat.  I  served  an  apprenticeship  there  before 
coming  here,  and  remember  with  loathing  such  expres- 
sions as  "  wiping  the  floor  "  or  "  cutting  stripes  through 
them"  applied  to  some  of  the  finest  of  animal  forms. 
No  sense  of  respect  for  game,  no  admiration  of  its  grace 


AFRICA— SOUTH   AND   EAST  5 

or  beauty,  ever  penetrated  minds  debased  by  decades  of 
slangliter.  Game  was  nothing  more  than  a  target ; 
after  that,  biltong,  reims,  and  so  on. 

In  the  south  no  remedy  will  now  avail.  Over  vast 
areas,  formerly  abounding  in  game,  it  is  too  late,  though 
in  the  Transvaal  a  praiseworthy  effort  is  being  made  by 
the  establishment  of  a  "  Game  Reserve"  in  the  Lebombo 
bush- veld.  ^ 

In  British  East  Africa  the  contrast  is  striking;  and 
welcome.  The  game,  though  wild  and  alert  as  the 
desert-born  will  ever  be,  here  retains  its  pristine  nobility 
and  self-jDossession ;  it  is  not  merely  the  harassed  and 
terror-stricken  remnant  of  devastated  herds. 

Our  own  initial  experience  in  East  Africa  was  un- 

J. 

fortunate ;  for  within  three  days  of  reaching  Nairobi  the 
author  succumbed  to  malarial  fever.  With  reluctance  is 
so  purely  personal  a  matter  here  mentioned,  and  only 
because  it  is  essential  to  the  narrative — and  besides,  the 
incident  may  serve  to  save  others  from  a  like  ill,  so 
simply  contracted,  so  easily  avoided. 

Landing  at  Mombasa  tw^enty  days  after  leaving 
London,  one  may  reckon  on  at  least  a  day  or  two's 
delay  at  the  terminal  port  while  arranging  the  final 
equipment  of  the  expedition.  Now  Mombasa,  lying 
under  the  ecjuator,  is  distinctly  hot.  There  are  hotter 
places — Aden,  for  example ;  but  at  both  sea-breezes 
temper  the  sun,  or  are  said  to  do  so.  However  that 
may  be,  at  any  rate  when  the  up-country  train  finally 
steams  out  of  the  station,  the  very  last  thing  on  earth 
one  is  likely  to  think  of  as  a  necessary — and  hundreds 
of  articles  are  necessary  for  a  three-months'  sojourn 
under  canvas — at  that  melting  moment,  as  suggested, 
the  very  last  desiderata  one  thinks  of  are  warm  WTaps, 
ulsters  and  blankets.     The  mere  idea  is  repugnant. 

^  This  is  a  region  expressly  adapted  by  natui'e  for  such  a  pur- 
pose, and  practically  useless  for  any  other.  Owing  to  its  low-ljing 
situation,  reeking  "with  malaria,  it  is  uninhabitable  by  human  kind, 
white  or  black,  except  only  during  the  dry  winter  months — June  to 
October.  Thirty  or  forty  years  ago  it  abounded  with  big  game  of 
every  kind,  from  elephants  downwards. 


6  ON   SAFARI 

Yet  it  was  precisely  the  lack  of  tliese  necessaries  (in 
the  carriage  beside  me)  that  proved  my  undoing. 

The  Uganda  railway,  after  traversing  the  100-mile 
coast-belt — the  low-lying,  malarial  Taru  desert — at  once 
ascends  to  the  highland  plateaux  beyond.  During 
that  first  night's  journey  the  traveller  is  carried  up  to 
nearly  4,000  ft.  above  sea-level,  and  into  a  temperature 
that,  by  comparison,  chills  with  a  marrow-piercing  cold. 
At  sundown  you  are  melting ;  before  midnight,  frozen. 
When  darkness  closes  in  the  scene  is  truly  tropical  : 
there  are  palms,  bananas,  papyrus  and  the  rest.  When 
daylight  dawns  it  reveals  bramble  and  bracken,  sometimes 
even  hoar-frost. 

This  nio-ht-cold  cuts  to  the  bone — unless  one  is 
provided  with  the  simple  necessary  wraps,  m  my  case 
overlooked.  The  result  was  an  internal  chill,  followed 
by  colic,  terminating  in  fever. 

Cruel  was  the  disappointment.  Already,  while 
traversing  the  Athi  Plains,  we  had  witnessed  the  abund- 
ance of  wild  game,  and  keenness  to  get  among  them 
passed  all  bounds  ;  yet  now,  for  a  weary  fortnight,  I 
was  held  up  with  fever  and  a  temperature  anywhere 
around  106  degrees.  Lucky,  indeed,  that  this  occurred 
at  Nairobi,  where  there  was  a  medico  of  sorts,  rough 
though  kindly,  and  where  prescriptions  were  (in  those 
days)  dispensed  in  empty  beer-bottles.  Nairobi's  single 
wood-built  hotel  of  that  epoch  (since  burnt  out),  run  on 
the  usual  free-and-easy  colonial  lines,  compares  not  with 
the  palatial  structures  of  the  modern  capital  (things 
move  fast  thereaway),  yet  was  thoroughly  comfortable. 
More  than  that,  at  the  hands  of  the  two  Miss  Raynes — 
busy  as  they  were  with  a  thousand  more  important 
thino's — I  received  durino;  this  illness  a  care  and  attention 
that  will  ever  remain  a  grateful  memory. 

Meanwhile,  within  an  afternoon's  walk  of  the  town, 
my  brother  Walter  had  found  abundant  game — harte- 
beests  and  zebra,  gazelles,  ostrich,  cranes  and  bustard — 
and  had  already  opened  our  score.  But,  so  soon  as  the 
crisis  of  the  fever  had  passed,  he  left  me  and  went  on 


AFEICA— SOUTH  AND   EAST  7 

alone  with  the  "  Safari " — as  a  mobilised  hunting  ex- 
pedition is  called ;  for  it  was  obviously  inadvisable  to 
keep  a  crowd  of  between  forty  and  fifty  "  boys "  idle 
among  the  many  temptations  of  Nairobi. 

In  Equatoria,  it  should  be  explained,  there  is  none 
of  that  monotonous  "  trekking-in  "  by  ox- waggon  that 
characterised  South- African  hunting — trekking  that  often 
occupied  wearisome  weeks  ere  a  game- country  was 
reached.  Here  the  terror  of  the  tsetse-fly  has  eliminated 
all  that,  and  transport,  away  from  the  railway,  is  entirely 
effected  upon  the  heads  of  native  porters.  Thence 
springs  the  genesis  of  the  "  Safari." 

A  feature  in  this  fever  was  the  rapid  recovery. 
On  the  day  when  the  doctor  told  me  I  might  start  on 
the  morrow  I  found  myself  too  weak  to  stand  upright 
unaided,  and  next  morning  required  support  on  both 
sides  to  limp  as  far  as  the  station,  though  barely  two 
hundred  yards  away.  It  seemed  madness  to  go ;  yet  I 
obeyed  and  went,  with  the  result  that  within  forty- eight 
hours  I  could  do  a  twelve-hours'  march  and  after  that 
was  as  fit  as  ever,  and  remained  so  durino-  three  months' 
hunting.  The  experience  seems  elocjuent  of  the  superb 
climate  of  these  highlands  and  of  its  recuperative 
qualities. 

Possibly  there  may  exist,  in  that  combination  of 
equatorial  sun-power  tempered  by  high  altitude,  some 
health-giving  property,  an  elixir,  that  yet  remains  to 
be  defined  by  medical  science.  I  feel  it  nothing  less 
than  East  Africa's  due  to  mention  that  after  each  of  my 
expeditions  therein  (despite  the  accidental  ill-luck  of  get- 
ting malarial  fever)  I  have  personally  felt  reinvigorated 
and  about  five  years  younger !  Permanent  residence 
there  may,  of  course,  be  cpiite  a  diff"erent  matter. 

On  reaching  my  destination  at  Eburu  that  evening, 
after  seven  hours'  railway  journey,  it  was  both  surprising 
and  grateful  to  notice  the  evident  pleasure  shown  by 
our  retinue  of  "savages"  at  my  recovery,  though  I  was, 
so  far,  almost  a  total  stranger  to  them  all.  They 
crowded  round  the  carriage,  and  on  seeing  that  I  had 


8 


ON   SAFARI 


difficulty  in  descending — there  are  no  platforms  in  the 
wilds — lifted  me  down  and  almost  carried  me  to  our 
camp,  which  was  pitched  on  a  rugged  hillside  above. 
Next  morning  a  smiling  Swahili  presented  me  with  a 
stout  stafl'of  M'piqui  wood  that  I  have  since  carried  over 
thousands  of  miles  in  Africa,  and  which  I  still  use  at 
home.  This  slight  tribute  to  the  savage  Swahili  shall 
not  be  omitted. 


SING-SING  AVATERBTJCK — abnormal  head. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE   EQUATORIAL   TREXCH 

HUNTING   IN   THE    RIFT   VALLEY    (eBURU    TO    THE 
ENDERIT    river) 

The  Equatorial  TreDcli  is  an  old-time  geological  fissure 
that  bisects  British  East  Africa  from  north  to  south. 
It  is  stated  that  the  course  of  the  Trench  is  traceable 
northwards  across  the  Red  Sea  into  the  Jordan  Valley 
in  Palestine.  However  that  may  be,  at  least  the 
Trench  is  visible  enough  in  these  latitudes,  where  it  is 
known  as  the  Rift  Yalley.  Every  passenger  on  the 
Uganda  railway  must  realise  its  existence  when,  shortly 
after  passing  Limoru  (400  miles  from  the  coast),  the 
train  suddenly  dips  away  beneath  him,  plunging  down- 
wards in  what  appears  a  mad  descent  through  tropical 
forest,  to  a  station  yclept  "  Escarpment." 

Within  a  mile  or  two  he  has  been  hurled  into  an 
abyss,  dropping  from  7,500  ft.  elevation  at  Limoru 
to  5,800  ft.  on  the  Enderit  River.  Those  are  the 
engineers'  figures;  though  mere  cold  numerals  convey  but 
little  idea  of  its  sense  of  vastness.  And  on  the  opposite 
side  the  phenomenon  is  equally  conspicuous.  For,  after 
traversing  the  floor  of  the  Trench  (some  40  miles  across), 
the  line  rises  again  in  gradients  hardly  less  abrupt, 
reaching  an  altitude  of  8,000  ft.  on  the  Man  Plateau. 

The  width  of  the  Trench  varies  from  40  to  60  miles, 
its  floor  averaging  2,000  ft.  below  the  flanking  mountain- 
walls  that  enclose  it — Laikipia  on  the  east,  Kamasea  on 
the  west. 

Within  this  depression  lies  the  great  chain  of  lakes, 

9 


10  ON   SAFARI 

including  those  few  that  fall  within  my  own  narrow 
limits,  to  wit — Nakuru,  Elmenteita,  Naivasha  and 
Baringo. 

Eburu  was  the  spot  whereat  we  had  decided  to 
commence  om'  operations.  It  is  merely  the  name  of 
a  rugged,  volcanic  range  lying  at  the  verge  of  the  Rift 
at  a  point  where  the  hills  open  out  upon  rolling 
prairie  and  the  basin  of  the  Enderit  River. 

Eburu  proved  an  awkward  place  to  encamp,  there 
being  absolutely  neither  wood  nor  water  ;  for  both  of 
which  prime  necessaries  we  were  dependent  on  the 
good-will  of  the  baboo  station-master.  Since  then  the 
station  has  been  abandoned,  and  Eburu  has  reverted  to 
primaeval  desolation. 

That  first  morning  in  camp,  as  the  grey  light 
strengthened  to  the  dawn,  we  perceived,  high  overhead 
on  the  mountain-side,  what  apj)eared  to  be  columns  of 
smoke.  These,  for  one  unhappy  moment,  suggested 
that  other  camp-fires  desecrated  our  vale.  We  were 
reassured  on  learning  that  these  were  geysers — ^jets  of 
steam  issuing  from  fissures  in  the  plutonic  rock.  No 
other  inhabitants,  indeed — save  baboons,  which  barked 
and  chattered  from  the  rocks  above,  and  others  of 
savage  nature — abused  our  solitude.  The  name  Eburu, 
we  were  told,  in  the  Masai  tongue  signifies  "  steam." 

Our  object  in  making  Eburu  our  starting-point  was 
to  obtain  here  specimens  of  Chanler's  reedbuck,  an 
elusive  little  antelope  that,  belying  its  name  and 
abandoning  the  marshy  habitat  of  its  congeners  (save 
one),  elects  to  live,  chamois-like,  on  rocks  and  rugged 
mountain-faces.  That  one  exception  is  the  so-called 
Rhooi  rhehok  {Cervicapra  ftdvoi'ufitla)  of  South 
Africa,  which,  although  a  true  reedbuck,  is  also,  like 
the  present,  of  mountain- loving  habit. 

Chanler's  reedbuck  is  only  a  small  species,  weighing 
some  70  lbs.,  and  was  C[uite  abundant  on  the  rocks  of 
Eburu ;  we  found  it,  nevertheless,  a  most  troublesome 
trophy  to  secure.  Its  head  and  neck  are  tawny  yellow, 
yet  so  precisely  does  the    body-colour  assimilate  with 


HUNTING   IN   THE   RIFT   VALLEY 


11 


its  grey-rock  environment  as  to  be  practically  invisible 
at  any  considerable  distance.  The  creature,  moreover, 
is   the    very   incarnation   of    watchful    alertness  :    the 


V;  \v9-y'- 


grey  phantoms  of  the  uocks 
(chanler's  eeedbucks). 


immense  ears  and  full,  prominent  eyes  set  high  on  an 
elevated  forehead  bespeak  such  qualities.  Graceful  in 
the  extreme  and  most  interesting  to  watch  were  these 
little  rock- skippers  as  they  sprang  from  crag  to  crag  or 
filed  up  precipitous  ledges,  whistling,  and  flirting  their 


12 


ON   SAFARI 


white-fringed  tails;  but  they  proved  "too  much"  for 
us.  They  were  in  little  groups  of  three  or  four  up  to  a 
dozen,  and  all  day  the  bucks  kept  beyond  my  reach, 
though  on  several  occasions  the  hornless  does  were 
within  shot. 

Being  still  weak  from  fever,  I  found  this  hill- 
climbing  rather  heavy  work,  and  thought  to  organise 

a  "drive."  This, 
however,  proved  a 
system  hard  to  in- 
stil into  the  savage 
mind,  and  though 
I  got  one  shot,  it 
scored  a  miss.  This 
was  a  nice  buck, 
about  100  yards 
below ;  but  the 
aggravating  bullet 
splintered  the  rock 
some  six  inches  too 
high.  Chanler's 
reedbuck  beat  us 
both  here  and  on 
other  occasions ;  for 
we  met  with  it  again  on  the  crater  of  Meningai,  at 
Baringo  and  elsewhere.  It  is  common,  we  found,  on 
every  rocky  range  or  series  of  detached  koppies,  jet  it 
was  not  till  our  second  East-African  venture  that  we  at 
length  secured  a  first  example. 

Another  rock-jumper,  of  which  we  did  secure 
specimens  among  the  Eburu  hills,  is  the  klipspringer — 
an  even  smaller  antelope,  the  bucks  only  weighing  25  lbs. 
The  upright  hoofs  resemble  those  of  ibex  rather  than 
antelope,  and  the  sjDoor,  when  crossing  soft  ground,, 
gives  an  impression  that  the  animal  walks  on  tiptoe  ; 
but  among  rocks  the  klipspringer  equals  the  chamois- 
in  bouncing  agility.  Khpspringers,  probably  from 
having  been  but  little  disturbed  at  this  spot,  were  less 
wild  than  the  other  rock-antelopes.     They  seemed  to 


SUNBIRDS 


3      1,      1      5      ' 


5      >'J,i_      ">  t  , 


3     >  3  3     5      -i 


1         3     5  3      3    3 


o 


3 


HUNTING   IN   THE   RIFT   VALLEY         13 

rely  on  a  mistaken  confidence  tliat  mere  altitude  in  the 
crag-faces  lent  security  against  a  rifle-ball.  It  was, 
nevertheless,  difficult  enough  to  distinguish  precisely 
their, small  grey  forms,  300  ft.  above,  from  the  broken 
rocks  that  surrounded  them. 

Next  morning,  while  watching  a  group  of  reedbucks 
on  the  crags,  in  hopes  of  securing  an  opportunity  to 
stalk,  suddenly  three  impala  (one  good  buck)  appeared 
on  the  hill  above.  Then,  to  our  disgust,  six  Masai 
walked  right  across  our  front,  taking  not  the  slightest 
notice  till  we  hailed  them  with  a  request  that  they 
would  be  good  enough  to  go  somewhere  else.  Each  of 
these  savages  carried  the  usual  double-edged  spear  and 
customary  ornaments  (such  as  quarter-pound  'baccy 
tins)  stuck  in  their  ears,  being  otherwise  stark  naked. 
Later  on  we  discovered  that  these  were  the  advance- 
guard  of  a  migrating  tribe,  a  body  of  which  had  sj^ent 
the  night  in  one  of  the  huge  volcanic  chasms,  where  they 
might  have  enjoyed  warm  baths  free.  It  is  doubtful, 
however,  whether  nomad  Masai  apj^reciate  such  luxuries. 

This  intrusion  was  most  unwelcome  when  we  needed 
a  whole  country  to  ourselves.  Nairobi,  moreover,  when 
we  left  it  a  week  before  (July  1904)  had  been  seething 
with  rumours  of  native  unrest,  Masai  risings,  and  the 
like.  These,  we  knew,  were  quite  unfounded,  resting  on 
a  reported  decision  of  the  authorities  to  move  the 
aborigines  back  from  the  railway  so  as  to  make  room 
for  settlers.  Then,  as  it  were  lending  grounds  for  such 
fears,  a  detachment  of  400  "  Yaos "  (King's  African 
Rifles),  arriving  in  three  train-loads — the  troopship 
Clive  from  Berbera  had  entered  Mombasa  with  us — 
created  quite  a  small  panic.  But  these  good  black 
troops  were,  after  all,  only  returning  from  chasing  the 
Mad  Mullah !  Those  who  select  savage  lands  for  a 
home  should  not  give  way  to  fears  of  "  excursions  and 
alarms." 

The  removal  of  the  Masai  into  the  Laikipia 
"Reserve"  was  eventually  carried  out  without  the 
shghtest  disturbance  of  the  peace. 


14 


ON   SAFARI 


Owing,  however,  to  tins  untimely  Masai  intrusion, 
we  shifted  our  camp  a  dozen  miles  from  Eburu  into  the 
valley  of  the  Enderit  River,  enjoying  during  that  march 
some  memorable  spectacles  of  wild  animal-life. 


SKETCH-MAP   OF   COITNTEY  FROM   EBURU  TO   NAKURU. 


Beyond  the  rugged  foothills  of  Eburu  stretches  a 
region  of  open  forest  which,  at  this  date,  literally 
teemed  with  game.  Herd  upon  herd  of  zebras,  Neu- 
mann's hartebeest,  impala  and  the  large  Grant's  gazelle 


HUNTING   IN   THE   RIFT   VALLEY         15 


filled  the  view.  Further  ou,  where  forest  gave  place  to 
open  grassy  prairie,  all  these  were  literally  in  thousands, 
thoiigh  the  impala  always  frequent  the  fringe  of  the 
covert.  We  saw  no  elands  at  this  date,  but  the  plains 
were  alive  with  herds  of  the  smaller  gazelle  (Thomsoni) 
darting  about  and  chasing  each  other  in  sprightly 
exuberance.    Besides  these  were  wart-hogs,  ostriches  and 


SPOTTKn    HYEXA. 


great  kori  bustards,  while  crowned  cranes  in  threes  and 
fours  stalked  sedately  through  the  throng.  Jackals 
loped  hither  and  thither,  and,  further  away,  a  gaunt 
hyena,  looking  big  as  a  lioness,  shambled  across  the 
plain,  its  long  neck  held  stiffly  forward  at  an  upward 
angle  and  tail  carried  low  between  the  legs. 

At  one  point  we  counted  thirty-one  ostriches  close 
together — thirteen  in  the  nearer  pack,  two  of  which 
were  big  old  cocks,  and  eighteen  more  a  little  beyond. 
Hard  by  them  a  herd  of  zebra  were  feeding,  and  in  the 
foreground  a  group  of  marabou  storks  held  an  inquest 
over  some  bones. 

Strikingly  handsome  objects  were  the  crowned 
cranes  just  mentioned,  big  birds  of  boldly-marked 
plumage — velvety-black,  with  rich  chestnut  wings  and 


16 


ON   SAFAEI 


snow-wliite  undersides  that  showed  up  in  strong  contrast 
as  they  rose  in  flight.  The  curious  wood-ibis  (Pseudo- 
tantalus  ibis)  was  also  conspicuous  among  the  trees  that 
fringe  the  Enderit — a  big  stork-Hke  species  wdth  heavy 
curved  beak,  naked  head  and  neck  of  bright  orange  hue, 
and  of  Uack-and-white  pkmiage,  Init  displaying  rosy 
glints,  somewhat  like  a  flamingo,  when  flying.  By  a 
shallow  water-splash  sat  Egyptian  geese,  some  preen- 
ing,   others    asleep — strangely   unsuspicious    for    that 

w^atchful  tribe.  Hard  by, 
however,  w-ere  a  dozen 
of  the  noisy  spur-wdnged 
plovers  {Hoplopterus) , 
and  these,  as  their  habit 
is,  speedily  set  the  rest 
on  the  alert.  From  each 
patch  of  covert  sprang 
— or  ran — great  packs 
of  helmeted  guinea-fowl, 
francolins,  quail,  and 
"  jumping  hares,"  the 
latter  bouncing  a  yard 
in  air  at  intervals  as 
they  sped  away.  There 
were  C[uaint  hornbills  [Lophoceros),  bee-eaters  and 
bush-cuckoos,  while  gorgeous  little  sunbirds  fluttered 
over  each  flowering  shrub.  A  fantastic  bird-form,  of 
which  we  saw  a  pair  to-day,  is  the  mop-headed  touraco 
(Turacus),  with  a  ringing  voice  that  sounds  almost 
human.  On  the  thorny  mimosas  by  the  riverside  sat 
white-headed  eagles  [Haliaetus  vocifer)  that  rose  as  we 
passed,  startling  the  echoes  with  strident  cries. 

All  day  long  the  spy-glass  was  kept  employed, 
examining  some  new  thing.  We  ^vere  here,  zoologically 
speaking,  in  a  new  world — the  "  Ethiopian  Region  " — 
and  its  wealth  of  wild-life  was  bewildering.  Intense 
interest  kept  us  going  without  desire  to  kill ;  indeed,  for 
several  marches  w^e  shot  little  beyond  w^hat  w^as  actually 
necessary  to  feed  our  caravan. 


HEAD   OF  HELMETED   GUINEA-FOWL. 


HUNTING   IN   THE   RIFT   VALLEY         17 

The  sun  was  nearly  dipping  when,  after  a  twelve- 
hours'  march,  we  reached  our  camp,  ah-eady  pitched  in 
a  lovely  grove  by  the  Enderit — here  merely  a  muddy 
creek  dawdling  in  the  depths  of  a  bush-clad  donga. 
While  we  dined  that  happy  evening  under  a  spreading 
mimosa,  the  evening's  peace  was  broken  by  our  friends 
the  crowned  cranes  filing  overhead  in  noisy  skeins  to 
roost  in  the  tall  fever- trees  beyond.  Ducks  were  flighting 
in  the  gloom  up  the  river,  and,  ere  we  turned  in,  lions 
commenced  to  "  call "  in  the  woods  below\ 


CROWNED  HOENBiLL — LophoccTos  mela7ioleucus. 


CHAPTER  III 


THE   EQUATORIAL   TFvEHf OR— {Continued) 
ON    THE    ENDERIT    RIVER    AND    LAKE   NAKURU 

Our  camp  on  tlie  Enderit  River  was  surrounded  by 
park-like  country,  alternating  between  bush  and  broad, 
open  prairie,  with  part  forest  and  glades  of  infinite 
beauty,  while  everywhere  the  landscape  was  bounded 
by  the  peaks  and  scaurs  of  distant  mountains. 

Lovely  as  was  our  prospect,  yet  scarce  a  sign  of  its 

tropical  site  obtruded  on 
the  view,  or  proclaimed 
the  fact  that  we  sat 
practically  astride  the 
equator.  In  these  up- 
lands, the  absence  of 
such  evidence  is  con- 
spicuous. Neither  groves 
of  graceful  palms,  with 
their  troops  of  monkeys 
and  flights  of  shriekiug 
parrots,  nor  tree-ferns 
with  feathery  frondage, 
or  other  fantastic  forms 
of  foliage  and  plant-life 
-  such  as  one  associates 
with  the  torrid  zone, 
here  arrest  one's  gaze.  On  the  contrary,  the  landscape 
of  Enderit,  as  viewed  afar,  might  well-nigh  pass  for  a 
British  scene — not,  it  is  true,  in  the  crowded  south  or 
the  tame  cultivation  of  the  midlands,  but  rather  amid 
those  wilder  regions  of  my  own  northern  home,  where 
Nature  yet  reigns  unsubdued,  unfenced,  "  unimproved." 
There,  as  here,  a  shaggy  fringe  of  self-sown  scrub  or 
bush  marks  the  course  of  winding  burns  ;  natural  woods 

18 


DRONGU. 


ENDEPJT   RIVER   AND   LAKE   NAKURU     19 

cling  to  the  steeps  above  or  straggle  irregular  across  the 
plain,  while  crag  and  mountain-ridge  fill  in  the  back- 
ground.    Species  differ,  but  form  remains  not  dissimilar. 

This  morning,  ere  yet  the  dawn  was  fully  established, 
a  weird  melody  caught  my  ear,  and,  looking  from  the 
tent,  I  saw  its  author  on  the  topmost  bough  of  an  acacia 
— a  glossy  starling-like  bird  A\ith  deeply-forked  tail. 
This  was  a  drongo  [Dicrurus  musicus),  one  of  the 
shrike  family,  and  a  warrior  to  boot,  albeit  a  songster ; 
for  never  a  kite  or  crow,  not  even  an  eagle,  venturing 
near  our  camp,  was  immune  from  its  furious  onslaught.^ 
While  sipping  the  matutinal  coffee  I  could  actually  see 
herds  of  wild  animals  peacefully  grazing  within  view 
from  my  camp-bed !  On  putting  the  glass  on  to  these, 
I  found  they  included  zebras  and  Thomson's  gazelles ; 
while  further  away  the  ruddy  pelts  of  hartebeests  were 
distino'uisliable. 

The  latter,  in  this  district,  are  the  rather  scarce 
Neumann's  hartebeest  {Bubalis  neumanni),  and  to 
secure  specimens  of  these  formed  our  first  and  main 
objective  on  the  Enderit. 

The  first  animal  actually  shot  on  the  Enderit,  how- 
ever, was  a  zebra,  and,  while  skinning  proceeded,  1 
enjoyed  watching  that  ever- wondrous  spectacle  of  wild 
African  life,  the  assembling  of  the  carnivora.  Life  was 
hardly  extinct  ere  dark  shadows  passed  and  repassed  on 
the  sere  grass  hard  by.  Looking  upwards,  the  heavens 
were  flecked  with  circling  hordes.  Soon  the  smaller 
vultures  (dark-brown  neophrons  with  livid  pink  faces) 
descended  with  collapsed  wings,  alighting  with  resonant 
rush  all  around  us,  many  within  thirty  yards.  Then 
the  huge  carrion-vultures  (the  African  griffon,  Pseudo- 
gyps  africanus,  deep  brown  with  conspicuous  white 
patches  on  lower  body,  and  the  still  blacker  Eared 
vulture,    Lophogyps   auricularis,    with    red    ear-lobes) 

^  A  drongo  will  remain  perched  by  the  hour  on  a  bough, 
■watching  for  passing  insects.  Presently  he  darts  down,  catches  one, 
sometimes  two  or  three  in  rapid  succession,  then  returns  to  his  post, 
exactly  as  our  flycatchers  do  at  home. 


20  ON   SAFARI 

settled  in  groups  further  away,  forming  an  outer  circle, 
and  amidst  these  I  saw  over  the  grass  the  sharp  cocked 
ears  of  jackals.  Some  crowned  cranes  also  stalked 
through  the  group,  but  these  were  merely  locust- 
catching,  and  had  no  interest  in  our  procedure.  The 
case  was  different  with  their  congeners,  the  adjutants  or 
marabou,  several  of  which,  dropping  from  the  sky,  fell 
into  line  with  the  outer  circle  of  vultures,  while 
others  continued  sailing  overhead.  The  policy  of  these 
latter  seemed  to  be  to  make  sure  that  the  feast  would 
"go  round."  They  wanted  to  see  how  much  zebra  we 
intended  to  leave  behind.  Sailing  aloft  is  no  trouble  to 
them,  and  they  did  not  mean  to  descend  till  sure  of  at 
least  a  few  mouthfuls  apiece.  Within  half-an-hour  the 
nearer  vultures  had  disappeared.  The}"  had  not  gone, 
but,  being  tired  of  waiting,  had  squatted  down  to  sleep 
in  the  grass.  Some  jackals  had  done  the  same,  but 
others  stood  sentry.  Elmi  Hassan  (my  Somali  hunter) 
now  pointed  out  a  new  arrival — three  hyenas.  These, 
however,  kept  at  safe  distance. 

On  other  occasions,  vultures  have  continued  circling 
overhead  during  the  entire  process  of  off-skinning.  But 
ere  one  has  retired  fifty  yards  down  sweeps  the  whole 
crowd  with  mighty  rush  of  wing,  assembling  around  the 
carcase  in  a  surging,  seething,  tearing  mass. 

This  zebra  {Equus  hurchelli-granti)  was  a  stallion  in 
his  prime,  apparently  eight  to  ten  years  old,  and  ex- 
hibited (what  is  unusual  in  East  Africa)  the  paler, 
shadow-like  stripes  interposed  between  the  main  black 
bands.  The  striping,  broad  and  boldly  contrasted,  as  in 
all  East- African  examples,  extended  completely  over  the 
whole  body,  including  the  tail,  and  down  the  entire  leg- 
to  the  fetlocks.  This  is  the  form  once  differentiated  as 
E.  chapmani}  The  further  south  it  is  found  the  less 
complete  becomes  the  striping  of  the  zebra.  In  the 
typical  Equus  hurcheUi  of  Cape  Colony  (now  probably 
extinct)  this  striping  was  confined  to  the  body  only,  the 

^  I  notice  that  Mr.  F.  C.  Selous  refers  to  this  East-African  form 
(in  lit.)  as  E.  granti. 


5  J 

3  3      3',''  11 

3   13  11  3  3 

1  1  11111 


1  '  '  ''"    1    ','•,',       1      1  1 

"  '  '      '   1       1  ,     '       1      '     ,     '      '         1  1 

1        1        'l'        '  '      '  1       1      "l       '       l'      '       1,' 

11  llllll  'I'l',     l^lll'. 


-5-"^'^ 


•  •  .•  • 


» .  ."  • . 


ENDERIT   PJVER  AND   LAKE   NAKURU     21 

legs  being  plain  white ;  and  of  the  legs  of  two  pairs  of 
zebra  that  1  shot  in  the  Transvaal  and  happened  to  keep, 
one  is  almost  pure  white  from  the  knee  downwards,  the 
second  pair  being  striped  to  the  pasterns.  In  A  Breath 
from  the  Veld  Mr.  J.  G.  Millais  shows  all  his  zebra,  shot 
in  Mashonaland,  with  plain  white  legs.  Again,  in  the 
true  quagga  [E.  quagga — long  since  exterminated)  the 
striping,  half  obsolete  at  best,  was  confined  to  the  head, 
neck  and  shoulders  only.  This  was  the  southernmost 
form  of  all. 

It  seems  obvious  that  in  this  case  systematists  have 
had  the  bad  luck  to  begin  at  the  wrong  end  of  the 
rano'e.  since  it  is  from  the  north  that  the  true  aboriginal 
type  of  zebra  has  come,  dispersing  thence  southwards. 
The  laro-est  and  handsomest  zebra  of  all — a  trulv  dis- 
tiuct  species — E.  grevi/i,  is  still  restricted  to  the  north 
of  the  equator ;  while  the  southernmost  form,  typified 
as  true  Burchell's,  is  really  a  mere  degenerate  variation 
of  the  original,  heavily-striped  type,  E.  chapmani. 
Personally  I  am  no  advocate  for  splitting  species  merely 
on  such  oTounds  as  colour-variation,  and  am  not  even 
prejudiced  by  the  claims  of  a  namesake  ! 

During  our  first  week's  shooting  at  this  charming- 
spot  we  obtained  good  specimens  of  most  of  the  local 
game,  and  the  pile  of  horned  heads  and  pegged-out  skins 
behind  our  tents  made  an  imposing  show.  The  harte- 
beests,  however,  had  so  far  defied  our  efi"orts ;  they  were 
in  fair  numbers,  but  excessively  wild,  and  the  open 
plain  lent  no  assistance.  Rarely  do  these  large  and 
handsome  antelopes  trust  themselves  wifhin  forest  or 
bush,  and,  even  if  found  therein,  keep  constantly  on  the 
move,  as  though  ever  conscious  of  the  dangers  lurking 
within  covert.  One  evening  (July  27),  when  my  brother 
and  I  had  o-one  out  too-ether,  we  descried  a  dozen 
kongoni  feeding  by  the  rushy  foreshores  of  Lake 
Xakuru,  between  the  water  and  the  forest-belt  that 
fringes  it.  While  engaged  on  this  stalk,  I  espied 
beneath  the  trees  on  my  right  an  animal  that  com- 
pletely puzzled  me.     It  was  a  great  shaggy  beast,  very 


22 


ON   SAFARI 


dark,  and  with  horns  of  a  span  which,  in  the  gloom  of  the 
forest  and  waning  horht,  ahnost  suggested  buflalo.     To 


this  I  transferred  my  attention  ;  but  the  first  shot,  at 
about  300  yards,  missed,  and  it  looked  any  odds  on  a 
total  loss  when  the  unknown  beast  disappeared,  gallop- 
ing among  the  timber.     We  followed  fast,  and  luckily 


"gazing  in  the  wkong  direction"  (wateebuck). 

picked  up  view  as  he  left  the  woods,  and,  changing  his 
course,  came  cantering  back  across  an  open  prairie 
towards  our  rear.  Then,  by  fortunate  chance,  he  spied 
my  brother,  who,  with  the  "  boys,"  had  remained 
behind.  The  game  pulled  up  sharp,  his  magnificent  car- 
riage and  contour  recalling  a  colossal  red  stag  in  Land- 
seer's  bravest  type.  The  intervening  plain  was  dotted 
with  isolated  forest-trees,  each  springing  from  a  bushy 


ENDERIT   RIVER   AND   LAKE   NAKURU     23 

base,  and  while  this  splendid  animal  stood  fixedly  gazing 
in  the  wrong  direction,  I  succeeded,  by  creeping  and 
running  from  tree  to  tree,  in  gaining  a  range  of  just 
under  300  yards.  Then,  in  happy  moment,  I  dropped 
him  clean  with  a  '303  bullet  in  the  base  of  the  neck. 
My  prize  proved  to  be  a  Sing-sing  waterbuck  bull 


WOUNDED  WATEEBUCK. 


(defassa),  carrying  horns  of  28 j  ins.  What  had 
deceived  me  was  the  abnormal  breadth  of  horn.  These, 
not  being  set  regularly,  reached  the  extraordinary  span 
of  30  ins.  between  tips — a  measurement  exceeding  any 
given  in  Rowland  Ward's  Records.  I  killed  another 
sing-sing  bull  a  few  days  later,  but  in  that  animal, 
though  the  horns  reached  27|-  ins.,  the  span  between 
tips  was  under  a  foot.  In  his  dark,  shaggy  coat,  with 
which  the  white  collar  and  facial  markings  so  strongly 
contrast,  the  sino-sino-  is  an  altoo'ether  handsomer 
animal   than    the   common   waterbuck.      Both    species 


24  ON   SAFARI 

are  irou-grey  in  colour,  the  sing-sing  perhaps  sHghtly 
browner  than  Cohtis  ellipsijDrymnus ;  but  the  colour 
shown  in  the  plate  of  C.  defassa  in  the  Booh  of 
Antelopes  (vol.  ii,  plate  xxxvi)  is  wrong,  unless  the 
seasonal  range  of  colour  is  very  great.  A  w^hite  band 
surrounds  each  fetlock  immediately  above  the  hoof,  and 
is  conspicuous  at  a  considerable  distance.  The  dead- 
weight of  this  animal  would  be  about  500  lbs. 

Waterbuck  do  not  show  up  by  clay  in  anything  like 
the  same  degree  as  the  other  large  game  mentioned, 
their  habit  being  to  lie  hidden  in  thick  covert  till 
tow^ards  evening,  when  they  emerge  upon  the  lovely 
parks  and  open  pastures  that  fringe  the  river.  One  of 
these  spots  in  particular,  adjoining  the  confluence  of  the 
two  Enderit  Elvers  with  Lake  Nakuru,  was  indeed  a 
charming  picture — perhaps  500  acres  in  extent,  dotted 
wdth  forest-trees  siugiy  or  in  clumps,  and  entirely  inset 
among  woodland  and  thick  jungle,  which  friuged  the 
banks  of  either  river.  It  literally  teemed  wdth  herds  of 
varied  game,  and  forms  the  subject  of  Mr.  Caldwell's 
draw'ing  opposite. 

My  first  sing-sing  gave  me  a  lesson  of  caution  iu 
handling  these  heavy  horned  beasts.  Elmi,  finding 
himself  unable  alone  to  administer  the  coup  de  grace, 
asked  me  to  "  stand  on  the  horn."  This  I  did,  grasj^ing 
the  upper  horn  Avith  both  hands,  while  Elmi  stood  on 
the  tip,  outside  me.  Such,  how^ever,  was  the  tremendous 
power  develojDcd  by  the  big  bull  in  a  final  struggle  that 
both  of  us  were  throw^n  yards  through  the  air.  I  also 
received  a  blow  in  the  ribs  from  the  other  horn,  and,  as 
Elmi  then  fell  on  top  of  me,  I  got  a  shaking  that  I  did 
not  forget  for  a  day  or  two.  The  incident,  however,  ap- 
parently caused  merriment  to  my  brother  and  the  "boys," 
who  came  up  at  that  moment.  Leaving  the  latter  to 
bring  in  the  meat,  we  two  walked  campwards,  and  on 
the  way  ran  into  a  prowling  tiger-cat,  w^hich  managed  to 
bounce  through  bush  without  oflering  a  shot.  During 
the  subsequent  hunt  we  lost  our  bearings,  and,  as  it 
w^as  now  dark,  passed  a  bad  half-hour  ere  we  descried 


1        1    1       J     >    1        t 


ENDEEIT   RIVER   AND   LAKE   NAKURU     25 

the    camp-fires,    wliat    time    lions    were    Ijeginning    to 
call. 

Next  morning  I  secured  my  first  pair  of  Grant's 
gazelle,  the  buck  by  a  shot  in  base  of  neck  at  over  250 
yards.      He  formed  one  of  a  group  of  thirty  or  forty 


'•<>  1 


GRANT  S   GAZELLES. 


animals  widely  scattered  among  sparse  bush,  but  his 
was  the  only  good  head.  He  carried  massive  annulated 
horns  of  23  ins.,  by  seven  in  basal  circumference,  and*u^ith 
the  wide  sj^an  of  1 6  ins.  between  tips.  The  doe  I  got  by 
a  little  impromptu  drive,  killing  her  with  a  Paradox  ball 
as  she  flew  past  at  eighty  yards — a  lovely  creature  with 
horns  of  15f  ins.  My  brother  also  brought  in  a  Grant 
buck,  the  horns  being  identical  in  length  with  mine,  but 
narrower,  the  span  being  only  11  ins.  Next  day  I  got 
a  good  impala  ram  after  a  nerve-trying  stalk  through 
open  rush-clad  straths.     These  were,  however,  traversed 


26  ON   SAFAEI 

in  all  directions  by  the  curious  double  spoor  of  hippo- 
potami— regular  roads,  by  which  these  huge  amphibians 
came  out  to  graze  at  night,  and  along  which  we  could 
creep  unseen.  This  impala  was  lord  of  a  harem  of  no  less 
than  thirty-two  does,  and  I  thought  him  the  best  in  our 
valley  ;  but  my  brother  later  on  got  a  solitary  ram  that 
beat  him  by  half-an-inch. 

These  two  antelopes,  the  impala  and  Grant's  gazelle, 
carry  as  fine  trophies  as  any  game  on  earth,  having 
regard  to  their  proportionate  size.  Both  species  average 
from  10  to  12  stones  in  weiolit — sav  the  size  of  a  red 
deer  hind — yet  their  horns,  massive  and  beautiful  in 
sweeping  curves,  run  to  26  and  28  ins.  in  length ; 
"  record  "  specimens  reaching  nearly  30  ins. 

That  afternoon,  during  the  midday  rest  in  camp,  we 
were  visited  by  a  deputation  of  Masai.  These  stalwart 
savages — absolutely  naked  save  for  some  ornaments 
suspended  from  their  ears  (I  took  these  things  to  be 
ornaments) — each  carried  a  murderous  double-bladed 
spear,  long  enough  to  impale  three  enemies  at  once. 
(The  blades  of  some  I  brought  home  exceed  3  ft.  in 
length.)  After  much  palaver,  we  understood  our  friends' 
message  to  be  as  follows : — That  morning  a  lion  had 
attacked  their  herds.  They  had  driven  him  off,  and  he 
had  taken  shelter  in  some  bush,  where  they  had  left  men 
to  watch  till  we  could  arrive  to  shoot  the  depredator. 
We  set  off  at  once,  and  on  reaching  the  place  (an  hour's 
walk)  found  the  country  quite  open,  with  some  thin 
bush.  There  was  much  running  hither  and  thither,  and 
much  gesticulation  by  crowds  of  excited  Masai.  This 
at  length  resolved  itself  into  general  concentration  upon 
one  patch  of  low  brushwood  barely  an  acre  in  extent. 
Towards  this  scores  of  spears  now  eagerly  pointed,  but 
both   the  Masai  and  our  own   "boys"  hung  severely 

back.     Consequently  AV and  I  reached    the  bush 

alone,  each  attended  only  by  his  gun-bearer. 

For  a  moment,  I  must  admit,  I  hesitated  to  walk 
into  that  bush  with  a  live  lion  inside  it ;  but,  as  our 
whole  line  stood  halted  dead  to  windward,  and  within 


ENDERIT   RIVER   AND   LAKE   NAKURU     27 

forty  yards  of  the  patch,  and  nothing  moved,  I  signalled 

to  W and  we  went  in.     Hardly  had  we  advanced 

ten  steps  when  I  saw  a  long  cat-like  form  cronching  off 
through  the  thin  tail  of  the  bush  some  seventy  yards 
ahead.  It  seemed  small  for  a  lion,  but  I  put  in  both 
barrels  of  the  Paradox,  Elmi,  with  my  second  gun, 
dashing  right  past  me.     This  was  utterly  wrong  on  his 


^' 0^^_^  ^\^^ 


'■WHILE    I    HELD   AN    EMl'TY    GUX  "    (LEOI'ARU). 


part,  and  a  breach  of  all  rules.  At  that  moment,  while 
I  held  an  empty  gun,  a  truly  magnificent  leopard  leaped 
from  the  bush  within  tliu'ty  yards,  and  I  was  left 
absolutely  helpless,  to  admire  her  infinite  grace  as  she 
silently  bounded  jDast  my  front. 

What  an  unending  catastrophe  was  that  business  of 
Babel !  Had  we  only  understood  at  the  beginning, 
amid  the  polyglot  jumble  of  tongues,  that  it  was  two 
leopards  we  were  after,  instead  of  one  lion,  as  we  had 
gathered,  then  surely  both  would  not  have  escaped — 


28 


ON   SAFARI 


possibly  neither.  Elmi's  impetuosity  in  any  case  lost 
me  the  second.  Both  shots  at  the  first  had  missed.  I 
was  unlucky  with  leopards  this  trip.  A  few  days  later 
I  lost  another  good  chance  through  the  same  linguistic 
curse.  There  were  some  waterbuck  on  a  rocky  ridge. 
Whilst  stalking  these,  Elmi  spied  a  leopard  and  explained 
something  which  I  did  not  understand,  but  he  was  keen, 
and  I  followed.  We  reached  a  bare  grass-opening.  A 
single  thorn-tree  stood  in  its  centre,  and  beneath  that 
one  tree  lay  the  leopard,  in  shortish  grass,  scarce  fifty 
yards  away.  '•'  Shoot,"  whispered  Elmi ;  adding,  "  In  the 
hushes,  lying  down."  Still  imagining  we  were  after  the 
waterbuck,  which  I  presumed  had  moved,  I  scanned 
every  bush  on  that  ko^^pie  beyond — thrice  as  far  away 
as  lay  the  leopard.  At  last  I  saw,  but  too  late.  Ere  I 
got  my  sights  the  leopard  jumped.  I  waited  in  hopes 
he  might  stand ;  and  stand  he  did,  but  not  till  close 
on  the  ridge  of  the  koppie,  200  yards  off".  My  ball 
splintered  the  rock  a  hand's-breadth  over  his  shoulder — 
a  near  thing,  but  a  miss.  Had  Elmi  only  said,  "  Under 
the  tree,"  that  beast  could  hardly  have  escaped ;  what 

he  did  say  was  misleading  in  the  last 
degree. 

Althouoh  describino;  this  last  animal 
as  a  leopard,  I  have  since  satisfied 
myself  that  it  "uas  in  reality  a  cheetah, 
which  habitually  lies  out  thus  in  the 
open,  whereas  the  leopard  never  does 
so.  It  is  a  noteworthy  circumstance 
that  the  cheetah,  though  in  general 
appearance  closely  resembling  a  leopard, 
and  certainly  allied  to  the  Felidce,  yet 
possesses  a  dog-foot — that  is,  its  claws 
are  blunt  and  hardly,  if  at  all,  retractile. 
MASAI  CATTLE-BELL  ^  chamiing  fcaturc  of  the  shooting 

PICKED  DP  ON  EXDEPJT.  in  East   Afrlca   is   the   bush-stalking. 

jNow,  stalking  in  bush  may  appear 
a  simple  problem,  and  so,  no  doubt,  with  a  single  animal, 
when  stationary,  it  sometimes  is.     Such  chances,  however. 


ENDERIT   RIVER   AND   LAKE   NAKURU     29 

seldom  occur,  for  the  game  here,  such  as  zebra,  ehmd, 
harteheest,  impahi,  waterbuck,  gazelles,  wart-hog  and 
grass-antelopes  of  sorts,  are  nearly  always  m  herds,  and 
those  herds,  while  among  bush,  are  moving  about  on 
the  feed.  Hence  the  problem  is  not  simple.  Firstly, 
the  stalker  must  get  forward  at  a  fair  speed  or  he  will 
lose  touch.  Then  in  a  herd,  say,  of  a  dozen,  there  will 
probably  be  only  one  really  good  head.  The  other 
eleven  are  only  so  many  nuisances  and  sources  of 
danger.  All  the  eleven  must,  nevertheless,  be  held 
under  accurate  observation,  or  else  some  insignificant 
little  beastie,  appearing  at  an  unexpected  spot,  will  ruin 
the  whole  operation.  Bush-stalking,  in  short,  is  an  art 
in  itself,  affording  difficult,  but  withal  very  pretty, 
manoeuvrino\  The  hunter  who  has  sin2;led  out  the 
master-buck,  held  him  in  all  his  vagaries,  avoided  the 
keen  view  of  the  other  eleven,  and  finally  secured  the 
prize,  has  done  good  work. 

More  often,  instead  of  eleven,  there  will  be  forty, 
fifty  or  sixty  undesired  individuals  whose  gaze  it  is 
necessary  to  shun. 

Two  difficulties  deserve  mention.  First,  the  ever- 
shifting  wind,  which  changes,  both  in  force  and  direction, 
with  the  changing  hours  of  the  day.  This  trouble  is 
common  to  all  tropical  Africa,  but  is  specially  pronounced 
in  this  great  Rift  Valley,  which,  though  its  fioor  averages 
6,000  ft.  elevation,  is  yet  shut  in  by  loftier  mountain- 
ranges  of  10,000  to  14,000  ft.  in  altitude,  and  distant 
some  thirty  to  fifty  miles  apart.  Hence  the  light  airs 
move  in  puffs  and  eddies,  wafting  scent  one  knows  not 
whither.  When,  after  infinite  care,  one  has  gained  the 
deadly  range,  and  is  scrutinising  each  horn  in  the 
herd  to  make  sure  of  killing  the  best,  suddenly,  with- 
out a  moment's  warning,  up  goes  every  head.  Some 
treacherous  back-set  breeze  has  betrayed  us,  and  in  an 
instant  the  game  is  gone,  swift  and  silent  as  a  thought. 

The  second  danger  lies  in  the  presence  of  so  many 
creatures  that  lie  hidden.  I  pass  over  the  francolins  and 
guinea-fowl,  since  they  are  no  worse  than  the  cockling 


30 


ON   SAFARI 


grouse  that  scares  a  Highland  stag.  Here  more  serious 
obstacles  confront  the  stalker,  in  particular  the  "  grass- 
antelopes,"  duikers  and  steinbucks,  dik-diks  and  such-like, 
that  often  start  from  underfoot  precisely  at  the  critical 
moment,  and,  by  bouncing  away,  leaping  over  bush  and 
branch,  disturb  everything  else  within  sight.  Then  a 
great  wart-hog,  twenty  stone  in  weight,  may  spring 
from  his  lair,  grunting  and  snorting,  with  all  bristles 


WART-HOO. 


erect  and  tail  upright  as  a  flagstaff,  as  he  crashes  through 
brushwood  and  thorn.  In  each  case  the  stalker's  labour 
is  lost.  But  at  least  in  East  Africa  I  have  never  been 
thwarted  by  birds  —  that  is,  by  the  honey-guides 
(Indicator),  the  louries  and  social  shrikes,  that  in  the 
Transvaal  so  often  gave  a  note  of  warnino'  to  otherwise 
unsuspecting  game. 

Charming  examples  of  animal-instinct — approximat- 
ing to  reason — constantly  occur  to  the  silent  stalker. 
Thus  the  savage  wart-hog  aforesaid  may  dash,  snorting 
and  tail  erect,  through  herds  of  grazing  gazelles.     Up 


3      1    ',3       1  31 


ENDERIT   KIVER   AND   LAI^E  .NAIvURU.   §1 

O,,        >,'       ■'  '      »'       \       ,'     3.,'     o     •, 


Their  united  gaze  is  con- 


in  a  moment  goes  every  head ;  but  never  a  glance  is 
vouchsafed  at  the  immediate  disturber  of  their  peace, 
nor  in  his  ultimate  direction.  ""  '  ''  "■ 
centrated  towards  the  point 
whence  he  had  come,  and 
precisely  where  there  now 
lies  a  mind-tormented  hun- 
ter. Again,  in  advancing  on 
one  group  of  game,  the 
stalker  may  elect  to  take 
what  ap23ears  a  safe  risk  by 
exposing  himself — maybe  but 
for  a  few  yards — to  the  view 
of  other  game  far  more  dis- 
tant, possibly  half  -  a  -  mile 
away.  But  should  these 
latter  detect  his  movement, 
they  will  at  once — by  stand- 
ing at  gaze — signal  to  all 
within  view  the  presence  of 
dano-er.  The  nearer  o;ame 
— the    objects    of    pursuit — ■ 

though  absolutely  out  of  sight  of  the  stalker  lying 
prone  in  the  grass,  at  once  cease  grazing  or  resting, 
and  assume  the  alert.  Their  gaze  is  directed — not  to- 
w^ards  an  invisible  foe,  but  tow^ards  the  watching  sentinels 
beyond,  which  had  given  the  alarm,  and  on  whose  acute 
senses  they  are  content  to  rely  for  their  own  protection. 
Should,  however,  that  distant  group,  relying  partly  on 
their  own  remoteness,  but  more  largely  on  the  fact  that 
since  that  one  alarming  glimpse  they  have  seen  nothing 
more — for  during  the  subsequent  half-hour  the  detected 
stalker  has  lain  motionless,  careless  alike  of  biting  ants, 
spiky  thorns  and  sunstroke — should  they  either  recom- 
mence feeding  or  begin  slowly  to  move  away,  then  the 
nearer  game  will  also  forget  their  fears  and  the  stalk  is 
resumed. 

Following  are  notes  copied  from  diary — 

August  1. — Far  away  on  the  verge  of  distant  bush, 


GREY   LOL'RY. 


32, 


ON   SAFARI 


my  eye  caught  on  some  reddisli  object  that  might,  I 
thought,  be  an  impala.  This,  on  bringing  the  ghiss  to 
bear,  proved  to  be  correct;  but  that  impala  was  then 
seen  to  be  standing  in  the  midst  of  a  troop  of  zebras, 
completely  surrounded  by  them !  Yet  these  latter  had 
entirely  escaped  notice  by  the  unaided  eye. 

The  apparently  conspicuous  zebra  is,  in  practice, 
often  very  difficult  to  distinguish  at  any  considerable 
distance  among  bush.     Beyond,  say,  500  yards  (more 


.  -'/Var' 


IMPALA. 


or  less,  according  to  the  light)  the  broad  black-and- 
white  stripes  blend  into  a  grey  monotone  almost  invisible. 
In  the  open,  of  course,  they  are  visible  enough. 

Naturally,  when  viewed  against  the  sun  zebras 
appear  dark,  while  in  sunlight  they  look  white.  I 
recollect  a  single  zebra  at  sunrise  resembling  a  figure  of 
fretted  silver  as  he  stood  among  green  bushes  in  the 
early  horizontal  rays.  Giraffes  also,  seen  in  ordinary 
light,  assume  a  monotone  when  beyond  some  700  or 
800  yards'  distance.  That  quality  of  colour-protection 
has,  however,  a  strictly  limited  value,  otherwise  the  red 
impala  would  stand  in  bad  case. 


ENDERIT   RIVER   AND   LAKE   NAKURU     33 

August  3. — While  stalking  a  group  of  three  harte- 
beests,  in  creeping  across  a  belt  of  tall  grass  I  detected, 
through  interlacing  stalks,  a  small  antelope  close  in  front. 
Its  head  was  held  ^Dressed  flat  on  the  ground,  its  full  dark 
eyes  fixed  on  mine,  not  six  feet  apart.  By  the  short 
upright  horns  and  dark  blaze  on  the  face  I  judged  it  to 
be  an  oribi ;  but  being  all  anxiety  to  secure  the  coveted 
Neumann  bull  in  front,  I  declined  the  chance  to  add 
what  would  also  have  been  a  new  and  interesting  species 
to  our  game-list,  and  eventually  got  neither. 

Lions  were  numerous  on  the  Enderit.  We  came  to 
regard  their  opening  notes,  usually  heard  at  our  various 
camps  about  10  p.m.,  as  the  signal  for  turning-in. 
There  is  heavy  bush  alono;  the  riverside,  and  we  never 
saw  a  lion  here  by  day,  though  we  twice  fell  in  with 
tiger-cats,  and  once  w^ith  a  brownish  lynx  that  was  pro- 
bably a  caracal.  A  dark-looking  beast  that  I  had  thought 
was  also 'of  the  felines  Elmi  assured  me  was  a  "Yea," 
a  name  which  in  the  Somali  tono-ue  sio-nifies  a  huntino-- 
dog  [Lycaon  pictus).  It  was  alone,  slowly  pottering 
alono',  and  presently  lav  down  in  lono-  oTass  where  I  sot 
near  enouoh,  but  made  a  bad  miss,  runnino-  with  the 
carbine.  Another  animal  identified  throuoh  its  Somali 
name  of  ''  Shook-shook  "  w^as  of  the  Herpestes  genus,  a 
big  brown  mongoose.  When  first  observed  it  was  lying 
under  a  thick  laurel-like  shrub  bv  the  riverside,  devour- 
ing  a  francolin ;  but  a  bullet  from  the  Paradox  caused 
it  to  emit  so  overpowering  an  odour  that  further  interest 
in  the  specimen  was  impossible.  It  w^as  as  large  as  an 
otter,  with  a  conspicuous  bushy  tuft  projecting  above  and 
beyond  the  tail.  We  frequently  saw  smaller  mongoose, 
especially  in  the  early  mornings,  inquisitive  little  beasties, 
though  never  observed  to  run  in  a  string  as  they  do  in 
Spain.  Other  pretty  creatures  are  the  ground-squirrels, 
ruddy-brown  in  colour,  that  remind  one  of  marmots  as 
they  sit  upright  for  a  moment,  watching,  before  dis- 
appearing down  their  holes. 

Besides  all  these,  other  beautiful  antelopes  abounded 
in  our  happy  hunting-grounds — amidst  profusion  it  is 

D 


34  ON   SAFARI 

difficult  to  do  justice  to  all.  Buslibuck  inhabited  the 
dense  "lion-scrub"  that  fringed  the  east  river.  These, 
like  the  waterbuck,.  are  nocturnal.  We  saw  them  at 
dawn ;  and,  shortly  before  sundown,  they  again  showed 
up  outside  the  jungle,  feeding  among  the  scattered  trees. 
One  special  buck  attracted  my  attention — coal-black  he 
appeared  in  his  glossy  pile.  Next  evening,  punctual  to 
a  minute,  he  appeared  with  his  three  does.  The  river 
here,  to  our  great  vexation,  we  found  impassable  owing 
to  the  thorny  jungle  that  fringed  it.  Presently  Elmi 
discovered  a  sort  of  tunnel  about  3  ft.  high — pre- 
sumably the  property  of  a  hippo — and  down  this  we 
had  crawled  nearly  to  the  water's  edge,  when,  from  our 
side,  something  (we  could  not  see  what)  plunged  with 
sounding  splash  into  the  pool.  "  Big  croc,"  whispered 
Elmi.  It  was  very  tantalising,  but  the  result  was  that, 
after  ascertaining  the  depth  to  exceed  a  yard,  our  coveted 
bushbuck  ram  was  left  to  feed  in  peace  on  the  other 
bank.  An  intense  aversion  to  reptiles — especially  great 
subaquatic  reptiles — possesses  most  of  us,  and  a  recol- 
lection of  that  picture  in  Arthur  Neumann's  Elephant 
Hunting,  p.  309,  does  not  allay  it. 

Then  there  were  the  "  grass-antelopes."  Every  day 
as  we  traversed  the  bush  in  search  of  bigger  things,  the 
ubiquitous  duiker  and  steinbuck  kept  bouncing  out  from 
long  grass  or  thin  scrub  at  thirty  or  forty  yards'  distance 
Both  these  little  antelopes  move  very  high  by  the  stern, 
and  being  fat  to  boot,  convey  an  idea  of  exaggerated 
footballs  as  they  dive  away  through  the  Inish.  Smaller 
still  are  the  dikdiks,  also  numerous,  and  all  hereabouts 
of  the  "  Cavendish  "  species  {Madoqua  cavendishi).  A 
male  shot  here  weiohed  onlv  11  lbs.,  yet  was  a  thorouoh- 
bred  little  antelope  at  that,  with  annulated  horns  a  trilie 
over  3  ins.  in  length,  and  tiny  hoofs  on  the  end  of  long 
legs  no  thicker  than  a  pencil — a  perfect  miniature. 

One  morning  on  the  Enderit,  coming  round  a  bend, 
I  "jumped"  close  by  a  heavy,  thick-set  beast  that,  with 
horns  laid  back  flat  along  the  withers,  crashed  away 
through  the  brushwood.     Not  knowing  what  it  was,  I 


ENDERIT   RIVER   AND   LAKE   NAKURU     35 


did  not  fire.  Elmi  asserted  positively  that  this  was  an 
oryx ;  but  now  (after  seeing  both  species)  I  am  satisfied 
that  it  was  a  young  eland. 

A  fortnight's  hunting  had  yielded  thirty-four 
selected  specimens,  comprising  eleven  difterent  species 
of  big  game.  But  hitherto  the 
intense  wildness  of  our  most 
coveted  object,  the  Neumann's 
hartebeest,  had  defied  our  utmost 
cftorts.  Stalking  on  the  open 
prairie  frequented  by  these  ante- 
lopes had  proved  impossible.  A 
carefully-organised  "drive"  had 
failed — I  will  not  say  through 
the  stupidity  of  the  drivers,  but 
simply  because  savages  could  not 
comprehend  the  scope  of  the 
operation.  On  our  last  day  but 
one  we  adopted  a  modified  scheme 
of  simply  "moving"  a  herd,  and 
this  so  far  succeeded  that  we  each 
secured  a  specimen  at  extreme 
ranges.  Both,  unluckily,  proved 
to  be  females,  mine  being  a  fine 
adult,  carrying  a  head  of  15f  ins., 
and  my  brother's  a  smaller  cow. 
The  latter,  having  only  a  broken 
shoulder,  led  us  a  long  chase,  and 
eventually,  after  receiving  two 
more  bullets  (one  in  the  head), 
entered  a  patch  of  thick  wood. 

Happening  to  be  the  nearest, 
I    followed    in    and   finished   her 

with  the  Paradox ;  but  the  shot  was  instantly  echoed 
by  a  succession  of  such  roars  as  caused  me  to 
regain    the    open    with    quite    unseemly    haste— so,    at 

least,  it  appeared  to   W ,  who  was   some  distance 

away.  On  reconnoitring  from  a  safer  point,  we  found 
that  the  cause  of  alarm    was  a   herd  of  hippopotami. 


HUNTING-KNIFE     SHEATHED 

IN   SKIN   FROM  AN    IMPALA's 

PASTERN, 


36 


ON   SAFARI 


This  little  wood,  unknown  to  me,  bordered  a  creek  of 
Lake  Nakiiru,  and  a  score  of  these  pachyderms  had  been 
lying  asleep  within  a  few  yards  of  where  I  had  fired  that 
final  shot. 

Thus  the  bull  of  Neumann's  hartebeest,  for  the 
present,  remained  wanting.  I  had,  however,  secured 
an  immature  example,  and  the  annexed  drawing  shows 
the  earlier,  upright  growth  in  the  horns  of  this  species. 
They  belonged  to  a  nearly  full-grown  calf  (female),  and 


HEADS   OF   NEUMAXX  S  HARTEBEEST. 

Bull,  1S|  ins.  (shot  later)  ;  cow,  log  ius.  ;  immature,  lOf  ins. 

measured  lOf  ins.  in  length  along  the  front  curve.  How 
I  came  to  kill  this  small  beast  I  never  quite  knew. 
Possibly  the  bullet,  missing  its  mark,  had  struck  another  ; 
more  probably  (the  distance  being  great  and  the  grass 
long)  the  luckless  youngster  had  been  standing  in  front 
of  a  larger  animal,  which  masked  the  separate  outline. 
Anyway,  it  lay  there  dead  ;  and,  after  all,  its  horns 
exhibit  an  interesting  phase  of  growth. 

That  evening,  close  to  camp,  I  saw  another  leopard. 
He  retreated  into  heavy  bush  overhanging  the  banks  of 
a  stream — a  favourable  place  to  hustle  him  out.  I  had 
fifteen  "  boys  "  with  me,  Swahilis,  but  to  my  surprise 
not  one  of  them  would  face  the  job,  and  the  leopard 


ENDERIT   RIVER   AND   LAKE  NAKURU     37 

escaped  tliroiigh  an  irrational  care  for  their  precious 
black  skins.  For  a  mob  of  noisy  beaters  there  was  no 
danger  whatever. 

The  nomad  Masai  were  moving  towards  the  lake,  and 
this  evening  (August  5)  we  saw  in  many  directions  the 


ii:,  %,^i 


i/./ 


GOLIATH  HERON — Biggest  of  his  tribe. 

smoke  of  grass-fires  where  they  were  burning-off  the 
dead  herbao;e.  We  next  mornino-  walked  down  toojether 
to  examine  the  marvellous  bird-life  that  swarms  around 
the  shores  of  Lake  Nakuru.  Never  have  I  seen  greater 
aggregations  or  such  variety  of  water-fowl.  These  be- 
longed to  forms  and  genera  all  familiar,  yet  specifically 
almost  everv  bird  was  an  entire  strano'er  to  me.     The 


38  ON   SAFAEI 

special  character  that  arrested  attention  was  the  immense 
size  of  many  species.  There  were  colossal  cranes,  storks 
and  herons,  perfect  giants  of  the  bird-world.  There 
were  pelicans  in  droves  ;  these,  of  course,  are  always  big. 
Geese,  ducks  and  flamingoes  in  thousands  filled  air  and 
water.  Darters  (Plotiis)  with  snake-like  necks  and  small 
cormorants  perched  on  half-submerged  trees.  There 
were  herons  and  egrets  in  their  many  varieties  ;  ibises 
of  both  kinds,  with  plovers  and  sandpipers,  gulls  great 
and  small,  grebes,  and  many  more.  Though  I  have 
been  an  ornithologist  all  my  life,  I  hardly  dare  further 
attempt  to  describe  or  define  those  exotic  multitudes. 
The  assemblage,  however,  certainly  included  the  Goliath 
heron,  tall  and  grey,  standing  bolt  upright  as  a  Guards- 
man ;  another  conspicuous  monster  being  the  huge 
jabiru  or  saddle-bill,  with  its  heavy,  uj)-tilted,  murderous 
beak,  red,  with  a  broad  black  band  in  centre,  both  of 
which  birds  I  have  endeavoured  to  portray.  Besides 
these,  there  are  entered  in  my  notebook — though  with 
due  doubtfulness,  both  on  this  and  other  occasions  around 
Nakuru's  shore — the  whale-billed  stork  [Baloeniceps) 
and  the  great  wattled  crane  {Grus  ccirunculata) ,  a 
sjDccies  I  had  met  with  in  South  Africa;  but  neither 
bird  has  yet  been  proved  to  occur  here  in  Ecjuatoria. 

Two  flamingoes  that  I  killed  with  the  rifle  were  of 
the  European  species  {Fhcerdcojyterus  roseus),  but  we 
saw  others  that  were  red  all  over  [Ph.  minor). 

Many  hippo  lay  in  the  shallows  off'-shore ;  one,  an 
immense  bull  with  pink  cheeks  and  neck,  showed 
splendid  curved  ivory  as  he  opened  a  cavernous  mouth 

to  yawn.     He  ofl'ered  a  good  target,  and  W put  in 

a  bullet  that  told  well.  The  hippo  disappeared,  and  we 
saw  him  no  more,  though  we  waited  all  day  (watching 
the  birds  also)  and  sent  down  "boys"  next  morning. 
Neither  of  us  fired  at  hippo  again. 

That  evening  we  marched  into  Nakuru  and  encamped 
alongside  the  railway.  There  is  a  Dak  bungalow  at  the 
station,  and,  without  being  Sybarites,  we  enjoyed  an 
excellent  dinner  and  a  bottle  of  "Pontet  Canet — a  grateful 
change  from  the  rough  fare  of  the  veld. 


AFRICAN   JABIRU,    OR   SADDLE-BILL. 


CHAPTER   IV 

A   LION-DRIVE   ON    LAKE   NAKURU 

Lions  were  not  specially  included  in  our  programme 
or  our  ambitions  when  we  first  landed  in  British  East 
Africa ;  for  much  time  expended  in  vain  and  many 
uncomfortable  hours  endured  during  my  previous  expe- 
dition (in  South  Africa)  in  the  efi'ort  to  bag  a  lion  had 
driven  home  the  conclusion  that  to  secure  the  king  of 
beasts  was  beyond  my  powers.  But  dis  aliter  visum. 
Lions,  it  may  here  be  remarked,  are  still  sufficiently 
numerous  in  British  East  Africa,  especially  in  those 
regions  where  antelopes,  zebra  and  other  game  so 
greatly  abound,  such  as  the  Athi  Plains  and  parts  of 
the  great  Rift  Valley.  During  our  three  months' 
sojourn  in  East  Africa  in  1904  we  had  several  camps 
at  which  we  heard  lions  calling  almost  every  night,  yet 
never,  that  year,  did  we  personally  see  one  alive,  except 
on  the  single  occasion  which  I  here  propose  to  relate.  In 
South  Africa  I  enjoyed  one  glimpse  of  a  lion,  and  the 
rough  sketch  made  in  my  note-book  of  that  sight, 
which,  cursory  as  it  was,  must  always  remain  a  notable 
memory,  is  here  translated  by  Mr.   Caldwell. 

It  is,  perhaps,  needless  to  remark  that  lions  do  not 
roar  when  hunting  at  night.  It  would  be  a  very  foolish 
beast  that  did  so.  Their  note  at  night  is  better  de- 
scribed as  a  call — a  sort  of  deep,  crescendo,  resonant 
cough — and  one  hears  a  second,  often  a  third,  cough, 
each  further  away  than  the  other,  showing  that  the  beasts 
are  hunting  in  concert  in  a  wide  wing,  and  thus  they 
maintain  touch  with  each  other.  When  lions  do  roar 
is    on  returning  homewards   full,  towards  daylight,  at 

40 


A   LION-DRIVE 


41 


which  hour  hunters  are  generally  too  fast  asleep  to  hear 
it.  The  only  occasions  when  I  have  heard  a  real  roar 
were  when  waiting-out  at  night  over  a  kill.  On  these 
ventures  one  has  to  spend  the  long,  dark  hours  on  a 
cartel,  or  framework,  fixed  up  in  the  branches  of  a  tree ; 
and,  under  such  conditions,  is  never  so  sound  asleep  but 
that  the  magnificent  reverberatinsj  roar  of  a  lion  w^ill 
speedily  restore  one  to  full  consciousness. 

The    herdsman-prophet   of    Tekoa    understood    the 


FIRST  GLIMPSE   OF   A  LION. 


habits  of  lions  in  this  respect  thousands  of  years  ago, 
when  he  wrote  (Amos  iii.  4)  : — "  Will  a  lion  roar  in  the 
forest,  when  he  hath  no  prey  ?  will  a  young  lion  cry 
out  of  his  den,  if  he  have  taken  nothiuo-  ? " 

Well,  on  August  7,  1904,  we  were  encamped  along- 
side the  railway  at  Nakuru,  intending  to  start  at  dawn 
next  mornino-  on  the  long;  march  to  Lake  Barino'o, 
distant  some  seventy-five  miles  due  north.  A  message, 
how^ever,  was  conveved  to  us  durino-  the  eveninsj  that 
H.M.'s  Commissioner  (the  late  Sir  Donald  Stewart)  was 
expected  by  train  during  the  night,  and  it  was  proposed 
to  oro-anise  a  lion-drive  on  the  morrow.     We  had  with 


42  ON   SAFARI 

lis  a  fair-sized  crowd  of  natives — between  forty  and 
fifty  human  beings,  Swahili  porters,  askaris  armed  with 
Sniders,  hunters,  tent-boys,  and  the  usual  components 
of  what  is  called  a  "  safari,"  or  caravan.  These  we 
thought  would  make  a  useful  troop  of  beaters  ;  but  they 
hardly  viewed  the  undertaking  with  the  same  enthu- 
siasm. A  Swahili  has  his  good  points,  but  he  is  not  a 
born  sportsman,  nor  is  he  any  longer  a  true  savage. 
He  wears  clothes  of  sorts,  drinks  when  he  has  a  chance, 
and  can  reckon  up  how  many  rupees  go  to  a  sovereign. 
The  true  savage,  such  as  the  Masai,  does  none  of  these 
things.  Any  reluctance  to  act  as  beaters  was,  however, 
soon  dispelled  by  the  forceful  suasion  of  our  "  headman," 
Maguiar,  the  huge  Soudanese,  whose  word,  backed  by 
the  obvious  power  to  enforce  it,  was  law  beyond  debate  ; 
and  after  breakfast  we  set  forth  amidst  deafening  din. 
The  regular  musical  instruments  indigenous  to  Central 
Africa,  such  as  drums  and  tom-toms,  were  supplemented 
by  empty  biscuit-tins,  gourds  filled  with  pebbles,  and 
other  ear-splitting  devices  quite  calculated  to  alarm  even 
a  lion. 

The  scene  of  our  proposed  operations,  less  than  an 
hour's  walk  aw^ay,  was  a  series  of  forest-patches  which  lay 
nestling  along  the  northern  shores  of  Lake  Nakuru,  a 
sheet  of  water  some  fifteen  miles  in  length.  These 
woods  were  of  no  great  width,  merely  belts  of  a  few 
hundred  yards  across,  and  conveniently  divided  from 
each  other  by  natural  opens  at  intervals  of  a  mile  or 
two.  Inland  from  the  forest-belt  was  open,  grassy  land, 
sloping  upwards  to  low,  rocky  koppies,  clad  with  what 
looked  like  bracken  and  brambles.  The  first  two  beats 
proved  blank,  nothing  bigger  than  "  grass-antelopes  "  or 
dikdiks  being  seen.  In  the  third  beat  I  was  the 
penultimate  gun  on  the  left  of  the  line,  facing  the  lake, 
the  last  gun  being  posted  to  command  the  extreme  end 
of  that  patch  of  forest  on  the  lake- shore.  I  had  selected 
for  this  work  my  12-bore  Paradox  and  an  old  '450 
Express,  to  which  I  was  long  accustomed,  as  being 
better   adapted   for    quick-moving    shots    at   moderate 


A   LION-DRIVE  43 

distance  tlican  the  far-ranging  cordite  "SOS.  I  was  lying- 
hidden  in  long  grass  about  one  hundred  yards  from  the 
covert,  and  the  noisy  line  of  beaters  had  already 
approached  within  half-a-mile,  when  my  Somali  gun- 
bearer,  Elmi  Hassan,  who  was  lying  beside  me,  pointed 
into  the  wood,  saying,  "  See  !  two  lions  I  You  no  see  ?  " 
I  certainly  did  not  see.  For  some  time  I  could  distinguish 
nothing  moving  whatever ;  but  at  length,  as  the  lions 
came  exactly  opposite  my  position,  where  the  wood  was 
rapidly  thinning  out,  I  saw  them.  They  were  not  easy 
to  detect,  so  low  and  stealthy  was  their  advance,  crouch- 
ino;  alons^  under  covert  of  brushwood  and  rushes.  As 
the  lions  were  completely  enclosed,  I  would  not  risk  the 
uncertain  shot  they  now  offered  ;  in  fact,  it  seemed 
to  me  clear  that,  short  of  breaking-back,  the  lions  had 
hardly  any  choice  but  to  pass  out  between  me  and  my 
one  left-hand  neighbour.  They  did  neither.  At  a 
point  exactly  on  my  front  the  two  beasts  lay  down  in 
two  green  bushes  that  grew  within  a  dozen  yards  of 
each  other  beneath  the  last  straggling  trees. 

Hardly  had  this  incident  occurred  than  we  became 
aware,  by  a  chorus  of  discordant  yells  from  the  beaters 
(some  of  whom  we  could  see  rushing  out  of  the  wood), 
that  they  had  come  across  something  inside  that  was 
not  C[uite  to  their  taste.  Amidst  the  din,  the  word 
"  simba"  (lion)  predominated,  and  at  once  the  three  guns 

on  ray  right,  including  my  brother  W ,  dashed  oft* 

towards  the  point  indicated.  Having  my  two  marked 
lions  in  front  of  me,  I  remained  quietly  where  I  was, 
and  so  soon  as  the  coast  was  clear,  beckoned  to  my  left- 
hand  neighbour,  told  him  what  I  had  seen,  and  arranged 
that  he  should  advance  from  the  left,  while  I  went 
straight  in  to  the  lions  in  front. 

Naturally,  under  such  circumstances  one  went  in  with 
every  sense  on  full  stretch,  anticipating  and  prepared 
for  any  contingency ;  but  on  drawing  nearer  and  nearer 
to  those  two  bushes  without  seeing  a  sign  of  movement 
within,  the  tension  began  to  slacken.  At  twenty  yards' 
distance  it  seemed  impossible  that  so  large  a  beast  as  a 


44  ON   SAFARI 

lion  could  still  be  lying  in  so  small  a  bush  without  my 
seeing  it.  They  must,  I  thought,  have  slipped  away 
unobserved,  and  I  was  walking  on  almost  carelessly 
until  within  ten  yards  of  the  right-hand  bush,  when 
Elmi  suddenly  seized  my  arm,  pointing  the  rifle  he 
carried  into  the  base  of  the  bush,  and  hissed,  "  See  !  see  ! 
the  lion  !  Shoot — him  spring  !  "  Once  more  I  must  admit 
that  I  could  see  nothing.  Strain  my  eyes  as  I  would, 
I  could  distino'uish  nothinsr  like  a  lion  in  that  bush — 
nothing  beyond  a  very  small  patch  of  monotone  in  the 
further  corner.  Yet  Elmi  was  so  positive,  and  the  bush 
so  small  and  so  near,  that  I  decided,  rather  recklessly — 
and  perhaps  from  some  sense  of  shame  that  a  black  man 
should  be  so  superior  in  eyesight — to  fire.  There  was 
no  mistaking  the  response — a  growl  more  savage  than 
ever  I  had  heard  in  my  life  before.  I  also  saw,  through 
the  thick  smoke  from  the  Paradox,  the  electric  con- 
vulsion with  which  the  beast  pulled  itself  together  for  a 
sj^ring.  That  movement  disclosed  the  position  of  the 
head  and  shoulder,  and  before  there  was  any  time  for 
mischief  I  got  the  second  Inillet  well  in  behind  the 
shoulder.  That  knocked  out  any  idea  of  fight,  and  the 
beast,  still  growling  but  mortally  sick,  crawled  out 
beyond.  I  now  saw  it  was  a  lioness.  Elmi  handed  me 
the  '450,  and  a  third  bullet,  raking  forward  from  the 
stern,  stretched  her  among  the  grass.  My  first  ball  was 
in  the  ribs  amidships,  the  second  high  on  shoulder. 

AYliile  rushing;  forward  to  examine  the  beast,  and  in 
the  excitement  of  the  moment  utterly  forgetting  the 
second  lion  in  the  other  bush,  now  behind  us,  1  was 
promptly  reminded  by  shouts  and  two  rapidly-fired 
shots  in  that  direction.  Turning  round,  I  was  just  in 
time  to  see  this  second  beast,  also  a  lioness,  bound  out,  a 
yellow  streak,  from  the  thick  covert,  growlino;  as  the  first 
had  done.  On  seeing  me  she  stopped  dead,  standing 
with  head  erect  among  the  green  rushes  by  the  lake-shore, 
and  looking  over  her  shoulder  towards  us.  I  remember 
seeing  her  white  teeth  as  she  commenced  another  growl 
— she  was  only  twenty  yards  away — but  that  movement 


A   LION-DRIVE 


45 


was  lier  last.     A  Paradox  ball  on  the  shoulder  dropped 
her  from  our  sight. 

When  this  second  lioness  first  bounced  within  sight 
I  had  thrown  up  the  Paradox  for  a  snapshot,  thinking 
she  was  comino;  straio-ht  on :  but  on  her  hesitatino-  as 
described,  by  an  inspiration  I  glanced  along  the  sights 
to  assure  myself  that  the  aim  was  correct.  The  gun 
was  then  pointing  a  clear  inch  above  her  shoulder  1 


')^t  ^ 


LIONESSES    EIGHT   AND   LEFT. 

{By  artistic  licence  grouped  nearer  than  they  actually  fell.) 

Both  animals  lay  quite  dead  within  thirty  yards  of 
each  other;  yet  my  companion,  Elmi,  who,  while  they 
were  yet  living,  had  been  as  bold  and  collected  as  though 
we  had  merely  been  engaged  with  antelopes,  now  de- 
veloped a  curious  degree  of  caution.  Probably  he  was 
right  and  acting  on  experience,  but  he  would  not  allow 
me  to  approach  till  he  had  collected  sundry  sticks  and 
stones  and  thrown  several  at  either  carcase. 

While  Elmi  and  I  w^re  thus  occupied,  we  had  heard 
several  rifle-shots  away  on  our  right.  It  now  tran- 
spired that  a  third  lioness  had  also  been  secured  by  the 


46 


ON   SAFAEI 


auns  who  (as  above  mentioned)  had  gone  off  in  that 
direction.  The  first  shot  was  put  in  by  the  Sub- 
Commissioner,  Mr.  C.  W.  Hobley.  All  three  lionesses 
were  dragged  out  of  the  covert  by  our  "  boys,"  and  laid 
in  a  row  on  the  grass  outside,  where  a  scene  of  inde- 
scribable excitement  ensued,  the  niggers  dancing  and 
jumping  around  the  dead  beasts  to  an  accompaniment 
of  shrieks,  beating  of  tom-toms  and  other  fearsome 
instruments,  including  biscuit-tins. 

I    measured    the    two   lionesses    with   which   I   was 
personally  concerned.     The  first  and  larger  of  the  two 


.4     < 


SAVAGES   DANCING  AKOUXD   DEAD   LIONESSES. 

taped  8  ft.  all  but  an  inch  ;  the  second  was  a  trifle 
under  7  ft.  All  three  had  fed  the  night  before  on 
zebra,  readily  distinguishable  by  the  masses  of  yellow  fat. 
After  skinning  the  lions,  we  tried  two  or  three  more 
beats  of  similar  woods  along  the  lake-shore,  but  with- 
out further  success  so  far  as  lions  were  concerned.  One 
incident,  however,  is  deserving  of  mention.  My  position 
was  in  a  small  open  surrounded  by  dense  jungle — a  sort 
of  green-room,  twenty  yards  square,  wallecl-in  by  masses 
of  viewless  shrubs,  lianas  and  creepers.  One  could  see 
literally  nothing  beyond  these  narrow  limits.  There  was 
one  gun  outside  me,  by  the  lake,  and  to  him  I  had 
indicated  my  position.     Where  precisely  the  rest  were 


A   LION-DRIYE 


47 


placed  I  knew  not,  nor  could  they  tell  where  we  two 
were.  While  the  beat  progressed  I  heard  some  large 
animal  approaching,  heard  it  arrive  in  the  thicket 
immediately  on  my  front,  and  stop  there.  In  vain  I 
looked  around  for  a  convenient  tree  to  ascend,  not  so 
much  from  fear  of  a  lion  as  from  the  risk  of  promiscuous 
bullets.  Trees  there  were  in  plenty,  but  not  one  could 
be  climbed  by  reason  of  the  pendent  masses  of  parasitic 
plants  and  prehensile  thorny  creepers  w^ith  which  each 
trunk  was  clad.  As  the  beaters  came  in  the  beast  broke. 
It  was  only  a  bushbuck  ;  no  one  fired.  But  with  careless 
guns  there  would  have  been  more  danger  from  stray 
bullets  than  from  the  most  savage  beast  that  roams  the 
African  forest.  The  evening  ended  in  backsheesh.  The 
"boys  "asked  for  twopence  each.  I  served  out  thrice 
that  sum,  and  posed  as  a  benefactor.  Next  morning  we 
started  on  the  long  march  to  Lake  Baringo. 

A  curious  incident  deserves  record.  At  the  station  at 
Nakuru  was  posted  a  written  notice  that  (presumably  by 
reason  of  some  small  trouble  with  the  natives)  sportsmen 
were  forbidden  to  proceed  "  north  of  the  equator,"  wdiich, 
the  notice  added,  "  might  be  taken  as  passing  over  Molo 
bridge."  Now  to  me  the  equator  had  always  been  a  sort 
of  abstraction — not  a  concrete  thing  capable  of  passing 
over  a  bridge,  like  a  donkey  or  a  telegraph-wire.  Hence 
I  had  mistaken  the  notice  for  some  tropical  joke  ! 
Fortunately  for  us,  being  that  night  in  the  august 
company  of  the  Government,  the  error  was  discovered 
in  time  and  the  necessary  permit  issued. 


CHAPTER   V 

A   TWELFTH    ON   THE   EQUATOR 
NAKURU    TO    BARINGO 

The  four  clays  j^receding  the  Twelfth  of  August  we 
had  been  steadily  marching  through  grassy  uplands, 
skirting  the  vast  crater  of  Meningai.  "There  was  but  little 
game  here  in  August;  but,  in  those  days,  many  Masai 
with  their  flocks  and  herds.  Eighteen  months  later 
(February  1906)  the  Masai  had  been  "removed"  into 
their  Reserve  on  Laikipia,  and  game  abounded. 

This  is  not  the  regular  route  to  Baringo,  whither  we 
were  bound,  but  we  had  selected  the  longer  way  round 
in  order  to  avoid  the  heavy  march  of  twenty-three 
waterless  miles  between  Nakuru  and  the  Molo  River. 
The  deviation  involved  a  lot  of  "  path-finding,"  picking 
up  landmarks  and  bearings,  coupled  with  no  slight 
anxiety  as  to  whether  we  were  really  holding  the  right 
course.  AVe  had  the  company  on  the  first  day  of  Mr. 
F.  R.  N.  Finlay,  the  South-iVfrican  hunter,  who  kindly 
undertook  to  set  us  our  course. 

The  first  evening  w^e  had  encamped  on  a  tiny  rivulet, 
name  unknown  ;  the  second  on  the  Ungusori  River.  On 
the  eve  of  the  Twelfth  we  had  reached  the  Alabanyata, 
a  rapid  muddy  stream  six  yards  in  width  and  a  yard 
deep.  At  midday,  hardly  had  we  "  outspanned  "  on  its 
banks,  after  six  hours'  marching  under  an  unspeakable 
sun,  when  shouts  of  "  Simba  "  (lion)  aroused  us  from 
a  hard-earned  rest.  Our  men,  scattering  to  collect 
firewood,  had  come  on  the  beast  close  by ;  but  though 
we  turned  out  at  once,  hunted  a  mile  down-stream,  and 
then  "drove"  all  the  thickets  and  likely   "holts"   on 

48 


A   TWELFTH   ON   THE   EQUATOR  49 

our  way,  nothing  more  was  seen.  The  grilling  we 
endured  in  that  noontide-hour's  hunt !  Vertical  rocks 
reflected  an  accumulated  heat  in  that  deep  gorge  that 
was  well-nigh  sufi"ocating.  Thermometers  are  useless. 
The  point  reached  that  night  we  named  Equator 
Camp,  believing  that  that  geographical  symbol  passed 
between  our  two  tents.  Perhaps  it  did — certainly  it 
ran  within  a  few  yards. 

These  four  days  we  had  shot  no  game,  and  a  gazelle 
[granti,  doe)    killed    this    evening    came    as    a   perfect 
godsend   to   the    commissariat.     Note    that   a    certain 
jDroportion  of  tinned  meat  should  always  be  carried  for 
occasions  such  as  these.     Strict  supervision,  moreover, 
must  be  exercised  over  the  black  cook,  otherwise  he  will 
recklessly  use  ujd  these  emergency  reserves  on  days  when 
there  is  plenty  of  fresh  meat  at  hand.     In  most  camps 
game  is  superabundant ;  but  there  are  long  marches  and 
gameless  stretches  for  which  a  reserve  of  tinned  stuff, 
such  as   "  army  rations,"   should  always    be  provided. 
To-night,  the  diary  records,  we  "'  dined  sumptuously." 
The  local  Masai,  friendly  yet  finely  independent,  had 
refused  to  trade  us  a  single  sheep,  or  to  hire  out  some  of 
their  sturdy  donkeys,  that  would  have  served  us  well  for 
transport.     Their  reasons  are  intelligible  enough.     The 
habits  of  these  naked   savages,  living  solely  on  meat, 
milk  and  blood,  needing  neither  cloth,  beads,  wire  nor 
anvthiuo-  we  could  oive  them,  left  no  medium  of  exchano-e. 
True,  they  came  daily  into  our  camps  for  medicine  and 
medical  advice,  but  that  they  expected  for  nothing — 
which,  it  is  jDrobable,  was  about  the  par  value  of  any 
such  advice  we  could  give. 

We  visited  one  of  their  kraals,  strongly  stockaded,  to 
inc[uire  the  way  to  the  Molo.  A  score  of  Masai  came  out 
to  meet  us,  each  carrying  his  spear.  The  chief,  an  old 
man,  grizzled,  reserved  and  self-possessed,  was  a  splendid 
savage,  standing  some  seven  feet  high.  In  reply  to 
our  questions  he  knelt  down,  and,  by  patting  the  ground 
with  his  hand,  indicated  the  direction  we  should  follow. 
In  August  flights  of  Egyptian  geese  and  pelicans  are 

E 


50 


ON   SAFARI 


here  constantly  winging  their  way  south w^ard — no  doubt 
from  Lakes  Baringo  and  Rudolph  to  those  of  Naivasha 
and  Nakuru.  The  curious  "  Kaffir-finch,"  or  King 
whydah-bird  {Chera  delamerei),  with  its  ridiculously- 
exaggerated  tail,  is  also  characteristic  of  this  veld,  as  w^ell 
as  the  Florican,  or  Wato  bustard  (Trachelotis  ccmicollis), 
numberless  larks,  pipits,  doves  and  ravens. 

The  distant  horizon  on  this,  as  on  most  grassy  dow^n- 
lands,  was  frequently  ornamented  by  the  gaunt,  upright 


KIXG    WHYDAHS. 

Males  entirely  black  except  the  baud  of  crimson  and  buft'  on  fore-wing. 


figures  of  ostriches  feeding  about,  usually  in  pairs.  On 
one  occasion  we  witnessed  a  struthian  love-scene.  So 
far  as  one  could  distinguish  at  the  distance,  the  cock 
ostrich,  running  in  circles  in  spasmodic,  jerky  style,  with 
neck  dilated  and  extended  in  front,  executed  a  sort  of 
wild  dance.  The  beautiful  white  plumes  of  wings  and 
tail,  expanded  like  a  fan,  showed  up  conspicuously 
against  his  jet-black  bod}^  The  scene  reminded  one  of 
the  performance  of  an  old  blackcock  in  x4pril,  or  (more 
appropriate,  though  less  accurately)  of  the  great  bustard 
in  Spain.  The  hen  ostrich  appeared  to  be  busy  feeding 
all  the  time. 

I  also  remember  seeing  once  a  triangular  fight  betw^eeu 


A   TWELFTH   ON   THE   EQUATOR  51 

three  cock  ostriches.  Despite  much  brave  show  and 
widespread  plumes,  not  one  of  the  three  would  close. 
The  fiQ;bt  deo-enerated  into  a  mere  demonstration  in 
three  acts — defiance,  charge  (not  carried  home),  flight — ■ 
and  this  was  repeated  again  and  again. 

Here,  on  the  Alabanyata,  we  decided  to  spend  our 
Twelfth,  and  made  an  early  start.  Down  the  riverside 
at  dawn  were  numerous  wart-hogs  in  troops  of  five  to  a 
dozen,  besides  ostriches,  gazelles,  small  antelope  and 
jackal.  Three  miles  below,  the  Alabanyata  utterly  dis- 
appears— lost  in  a  great  green  vlei,  or  marsh,  of  a  league 
in  extent,  all  choked  with  tall  flags.  On  the  grassy  fore- 
shore lay  a  herd  of  large  animals  that,  in  the  distance 
and  early  sunlight,  certainly  looked  like  eland.  On 
approach  they  proved  to  be  waterbuck  (defassa),  but 
all  apparently  females,  lying  down.  "  No  horn,"  was 
Elmi's  verdict ;  but  being  confident  that  such  a  herd 
would  hold  at  least  one  fair  male,  I  crept  back  and 
presently  gained  another  point  of  view.  From  here  we 
were  rewarded  by  discovering  a  grand  bull  lying  between 
two  groups  of  cows  and  half  hidden  thereby.  His  horns, 
laid  back  along  the  withers,  were  also  inconspicuous. 

The  utmost  point  of  cover  was  still  distant  just  270 
yards  from  the  game — the  intervening  foreshore  being 
bare  short  grass,  flat  as  a  cricket-pitch,  and  dotted  with 
enormous  wild  geese  of  the  sj^ur-winged  species  (P. 
gamhensis).  Buff'-backed  herons  also  marched  about 
among  the  sing-sing,  relieving  the  animals  of  parasites. 
The  cows  and  calves  kept  up  a  low  chorus  of  bleating 
cries.  1  half  thought  of  "  whistling-up  "  the  bull,  but  the 
obvious  risk  of  his  form  being  then  covered  by  the  atten- 
dant cows  was  too  great,  and  nothing  remained  but  to 
take  the  long,  lying  shot.  A  sloping  ant-hill  afl'orded  a 
perfect  "  rest,"  and  the  shot  was  followed  by  an  answer- 
ing thud.  Hither  and  thither  ran  cows  in  confusion, 
but  beyond  them  lay  one  big  prostrate  form.  The  bullet 
had  struck  the  neck. 

The  horns  of  this  bull  taped  28  ins.,  by  8|-  ins.  around 
the  base.     One  was  slightly  splintered  at  the  point,  and 


52 


ON   SAFARI 


one  ear  was  bitten  through — the  result,  no  doubt,  of  the 
fights  that  had  gained  him  his  numerous  harem.  Dead- 
weight, as  he  lay,  estimated  at  near  500  lbs. 

While  ofF-skinning  proceeded  I  strolled  to  some  low 
ridges  beyond  to  survey  the  country.  At  first  only 
zebras  and  ostriches  were  in  sight;  but  presently  the 
glasses  rested  on  an  animal  that  was  quite  new  to  me — 
a  great  dark-red  hartebeest  standing  beneath  a  shady 
mimosa  a  mile  away.  He  was  a  lone  bull,  bigger,  redder 
and  with  finer  horn  than  any  of  his  kind  hitherto  seen. 
This  was  my  first  view  of  Bubalis  jacJcsoni.  Him  we 
at  once  proceeded  to  stalk. 


Again  the  range  was  long — sighted  for  300  yards ; 
yet  so  severe  was  the  hit  that  for  a  full  half-hour  we 
never  doubted  that  this  also  was  "  our  meat."  Slowly 
he  moved,  with  frequent  halts,  but  on,  on  .  .  .  into  the 
low  hills  that  closed  the  plain,  taking  ridge  after  ridge, 
apparently  recovering  strength  as  time  went  on.  Then, 
on  topping  a  crest,  we  "jumped"  a  second  lone  bull  of 
the  same  species,  and  by  a  bit  of  sujDerb  field- craft  gained 
an  advantage  that  within  twenty  minutes  proved  fatal  to 
the  game.  This  hartebeest  had  dashed  away,  circling 
round  the  rim  of  a  saucer-shaped  depression.  Elmi, 
inspired,  plunged  into  this  dip,  directing  our  four  "  boys  " 
to  remain  standing  in  full  view  on  the  ridge  behind. 
Presently,  as  anticipated,  our  horned  friend  pulled  up 
and  stood  fixedly  regarding  those  four  harmless  Swahili, 


A  TWELFTH   ON   THE   EQUATOR  53 

while  we,  being  in  the  liollow  below  his  sight,  were  free 
to  continue  our  advance.  At  little  over  100  yards  the 
tips  of  those  thick-set  back-bent  horns  showed  up  above 
intervening  bush,  and,  firing  low  through  the  foliage, 
judging  where  the  chest  would  be,  a  dull  echoing  response 
told  that  another  grand  beast  lay  dead. 

Jackson's  hartebeest  is  the  finest  of  the  genus  found 
in  East  Africa,  and  closely  related  to  the  red  hartebeest 
{Biihalis  caama)  of  the  Cape.  It  is  probably  the 
northern  form  of  one  species,  for  in  some  specimens  a 
trace  of  the  black  facial  "  blaze "  characteristic  of  B. 
caama  is  found  retained  in  B.jachsoni — in  this  example 
it  extended  from  above  the  nostrils  half-way  to  the  base 
of  the  horn-pedicles.  Other  specimens  obtained  later 
showed  no  sign  of  this,  and  even  the  dark-red  pelt  is 
not  an  invariable  distinction,  for  one  bull  shot  later  was 
quite  pale  in  body-colour — lighter,  indeed,  than  B.  cohei. 
The  dead-weight  of  this  animal  we  estimated  at  full 
400  lbs.,  against  little  over  300  lbs.  in  B.  cokei;  and 
the  horns  taped  22  ins.,  by  10|^ ins.  in  basal  circumference, 
with  a  span  of  7|-  ins.  between  tips.      Irides  yellow. 

Meanwhile,  our  previously-wounded  bull  had  dis- 
appeared. We  made  every  possible  efi"ort  to  recover 
him,  following  for  miles  and  sending  out  scouts  to  watch 
the  vultures,  but  never  again  was  he  seen. 

Camp  was  now  five  miles  distant,  the  white  tents 
mere  specks  across  a  shimmering  plain,  and  it  was 
two  o'clock  ere  we  reached  them. 

Numerous  ostriches  on  this  plain  seemed  to  challenge 
an  attempt  to  stalk ;  but  this  is  an  undertaking  of  no 
small  difficulty.  The  immense  height  of  these  giant 
birds — they  stand  about  8  ft. — enables  them  to  see 
over  any  ordinary  covert.  They  walk,  moreover,  when 
feeding  along,  faster  than  one  can  run — run,  that  is,  all 
doubled  up  and  obstructed  by  strong  grass  and  intercept- 
ing creepers.  My  brother,  nevertheless,  secured  here  a 
cock  ostrich  under  the  following  circumstances.  Afar 
on  the  plain  two  ostriches  were  rolling  on  a  bare  patch 
among  the  grass — taking  a  dust-bath.     Neither  W 


54 


ON   SAFARI 


nor  his  gun-bearer  were  able  to  distinguisli  what  that 
dark  rollmg  object  was,  and  had  half  concluded  it  must 
be  a  rhino.'  On  their  arrival  within  200  yards  the  cock 
ostrich  stood  up,  and  promptly  received  a  bullet  through 
his  body.  He  provided  plumes  and  feathers  enough  to 
supply  an  average  family,  but,  as  regards  meat,  was  a 
complete  fraud.     There  is  little  or  nothing  eatable  on 


OSTRICHES. 


an  ostrich.  Needins;  no  wino;- muscles,  the  sternum  has 
not  even  the  rudiment  of  a  keel,  nor  is  there  any  nesh 
whatever  on  his  breast,  while  the  leos  are  all  sinews. 

As  we  had  both  during  the  morning  "jumped 
several  small  antelope  or  dikdik  of  kinds  unknown  to 
us,  we  took  Paradox  guns  that  evening  wdth  the  idea 
of  forming  line  to  walk-up  these  small  buck,  or  whatever 
might  befall.  A  very  hot  day,  however,  was  now  suc- 
ceeded by  rain,  and,  probal)ly  owing  to  the  grass  being 
wet,  several  small  animals  were  seen  to  break  away  wild 
before  our  advancing  line.     With  a  view  to  cut  these 


A   TWELFTH   ON   THE  EQUATOR  55. 

out,  I  pushed  forward  on  the  right,  but  only  succeeded 
in  heading  some  jackals  and  small  pig,  besides  seeing  a 
tawny-brown  cat  or  lynx  ;  and,  the  country  becoming 
wooded,  we  got  separated.  Holding  on  alone,  I  presently 
found  myself  on  the  same  marsh  where  we  had  shot  the 
sing-sing  that  morning.  Old  spoor  of  three  elephants 
led  alono'  the  edo-e  of  the  vlei — it  was  the  first  I  had 
seen,  and  I  was  horrified  by  its  size  I — and  several 
waterbuck  cows  still  awaited  their  lost  lord. 

The  hour  being  late,  I  resolved  to  remain  awhile  on 
the  chance  of  some  stranoe  animal  emers-ing  from  the 
great  reedy  fastness  at  sunset.  The  idea  was  vague, 
but  it  had  a  concrete  reward.  Presently  something  did 
appear,  and  the  glass  showed  this  to  be  a  tawny-hued 
antelope  with  strong  recurved  horns — a  neio  beast  for 
the  second  time  this  day  I 

At  200  yards  he  stood,  nothing  more  than  a  yellow 
head  and  neck  showing  amidst  contrasting  green  fiags. 
I  fired  three  shots  with  the  "303  carbine,  each  aimed  at  an 
unseen  shoulder  somewhere,  I  knew  not  precisely  wdiere, 
Ijeneath.  All  this  time  the  buck  stood  statuescjue — as 
it  were,  hypnotised.  The  fourth  shot,  directed  at  the 
head  itself,  went  true,  striking  below  the  eye  with 
instantly  fatal  result.  Ehiii  carried  our  prize  ashore 
from  a  foot  of  water — a  lovely  creature,  the  East-African 
reedbuck  [Cervicapra  tvardi),  quite  new  to  me,  and 
the  only  specimen  we  obtained  that  year.^ 

This  is  a  smaller  animal  than  the  common  reedbuck 
(which  is  not  found  in  East  Africa),  its  live-weight 
probably  not  exceeding  80  or  90  lbs. ;  the  pelt  is  rougher 
and  more  tawny  than  that  of  the  larger  species,  and  the 
horns  more  abruj)tly  hooked  forwards.  They  measured 
in  this  specimen  9j  ins.,  by  6  ins.  around  the  base. 
This  antelope  has  the  broad,  fan-like,  fiirting  tail  with 

^  We  have  since  found  them  quite  numerously  in  suitable 
localities,  as  is  mentioned  latei'  in  this  book.  The  valley  of  the 
Alabanyata,  indeed — down  which  we  had  just  travelled  without 
seeing  a  single  reedbuck — abounded  with  these  antelopes  on  our 
next  visit,  eighteen  months  later. 


56 


ON   SAFARI 


white  edge,  and  the  bare  sjDot  beneath  the  ear,  that  are 
characteristic  of  its  genus.     Irides  dark. 

Darkness  was  gathering  ere  we  started  campwards 
with  our  burden,  and  we  suffered  a  bad  half-hour  or 
two,  path-finding  in  the  dark  through  heavy  scrub,  till 
we  met  two  askaris  with  lanterns,  whom  AV had 


HEAD    OF   EAST-AFraCAX    KEEDBUCK. 


sent  to  pilot  us  in.     He  had  shot  a  Grant's  gazelle,  and 
both  of  us  had  struck  fresh  rhino  spoor. 

Thus  ended  our  Twelfth  on  the  equator.  We  had 
brought  in  five  head  of  as  many  difterent  species,  and 
three  of  them  new  to  us.  Plenty  reigned  once  more — 
we  had  half-a-ton  of  meat,  on  which  our  men  fed  like 
wolves.     Presently    weird    music — chant  and  song  ac- 


A   TWELFTH   ON   THE   EQUATOR  bl 

companied  by  reed-pipe  and  rude  guitar,  not  wanting  in 
its  own  appropriate  melody — startled  the  stillness  of 
the  tropical  night.  The  final  pipe  was  enjoyed  amid 
wondrous  serenade  of  nightjars  and  cicadas,  ground- 
crickets  and  bull-froo's,  with  a  backins;  of  laus^hino- 
hyenas  beyond. 

From  Ecjuator  Camp  we  resumed  our  march  north- 
wards towards  Baringo.  One  day's  travel  across  low 
rocky  ridges,  clad  with  scattered  mimosas,  brought  us 
to  the  Molo  River  at  Ya-Nabanda — a  spot  where  later 
on  we  enjoyed  some  memorable  sport.  Thence  following 
the  river  till  it  diverged  to  the  west  at  a  point  known 
as  Maguiohni,  we  struck  due  north,  three  days'  hard 
travelling,  entangled  all  the  time  in  intricate  passes 
through  rocky  mountains — cruel  volcanic  lava,  hidden 
boulders  overgrown  with  wiry  grass  and  trailers,  horrid 
with  bush  and  thorn — bad  going  for  the  heavily-laden 
safari,  especially  when  rhinos  filled  their  breasts  with 
frequent  alarm. 

It  was  our  object  to  explore  Lake  Hannington,  lying 
among  the  rocky  hills  to  the  eastward,  and  w^ith  that 
idea  we  had  left  the  track ;  but  the  deviation,  with 
loaded  men,  proved  impracticable.  We  struck  one 
corner  of  the  lake,  nestling  amid  forest-clad  heights,  all 
reflected  on  the  still  surface,  that  recalled  the  scenery 
of  Norway.  The  shallows  and  mud-flats  at  the  head  of 
the  lake  were  brilliant  with  innumerable  herds  of  rosy 
flamingoes  that  hid  the  water  from  view. 

We  were  the  less  disappointed  by  this  failure  as  the 
rugged  volcanic  hills  and  thorny  jungle  that  surround 
Lake  Hannington  did  not  appear  at  all  likely  ground  for 
eland,  which  we  had  been  told  frequented  the  shores  of 
that  lake,  and  to  secure  which  had  been  our  object  in 
trying  to  reach  it.  That  rocky  country  appeared  more 
suitable  for  koodoo  than  for  eland. 

At  all  these  camps,  being  in  the  Masai  cattle-country, 
plagues  of  flies  {like  ordinary  house-flies)  tormented 
beyond  bearing.  In  the  morning,  luckily,  we  were 
away  before  the  demons  awoke.     At  that  hour  they 


58 


ON   SAFARI 


formed  a  solid  black  mass,  inches  deep,  along  the  ridge- 
poles of  our  tents  and  in  the  angles  of  the  roof.  But  at 
midday  there  was  no  escape.  They  crawled  over  hands, 
face  and  food  alike  ;  swam  in  shoals  in  milk  or  coffee ; 
buzzed  in  one's  ears  and  down  one's  neck — one  long 
buzz,  buzz,  buzz,  bite  and  sting  from  dawn  till  dark. 

Thence  another  day's  travel  took  us  on  to  the 
Baringo  Plain.  In  four  marches  we  had  descended  from 
8,000  ft.  at  the  Ungusori  camp  to  3,500  ft.  here ;  and 


:  If . 


/^■^^Cr 


SOCIAL  ■WEAVER-FINCH,  Avitli  its  100-roomed  nest. 


the  reduced  elevation  was  marked  by  corresj^onding 
changes  in  the  heat,  the  vegetation  and  the  bird-life, 
all  three  here  assuming  a  tropical  character.  We  had 
descended  from  regions  of  bracken  and  bramble  to  palm 
and  tree-fern.  Birds  there  were  that  we  had  never  seen 
before — birds  strange  of  form,  of  plumage  and  of  flight ; 
all  then  utterly  unknown  to  me.  There  were  gorgeous 
tropical  types,  as  sunbirds  and  barbets,  bulbuls  with 
glorious  fiute-like  note,  heard  both  by  day  and  last 
thing  at  night,  and  weaver-finches  that  filled  whole  trees 
with   nests — some   containing    eggs,    others   young,    in 


A   TWELFTH   ON   THE   EQUATOR 


59 


August.  Bee-eaters,  of  vivid  greens  and  red,  flashed 
in  the  sunlight ;  but  a  yet  more  briUiant  hue  was 
disphayed  by  an  azure  kingfisher.  There  were  quaint 
hornbills,  rollers  and  bubbling  bush-cuckoos — the  latter 
not  heard  since  leaving  Mombasa — eagle-owls,  buzzards 
and  hawks  of  many  kinds.  A  conspicuous  genus  was 
that  of  doves,  thousands  in  numbers,  and  in  every  size 
down  to  the  tiny  G^na  capensis.  Insects  here  became 
a  burden — moscjuitoes  in  particular.     At  our  last  camp, 


^^ 


COUCAL,    OR   BUSH-CUCKOO. 

Known  as  "  Water-bottle  bird"  at  Mombasa. 


by  a  pestilent  swamp  on  the  Molo,  we  were  doubting 
whether  death  itself  might  not  be  welcome  when  a 
merciful  squall  blew  up  and  dispersed  them. 

Another  march  across  a  torrid  plain  where  great  red 
ant-hills  towered  w^  in  hundreds,  tall  and  thin,  looking 
at  a  distance  like  factory  chimneys,  and  amidst  which 
we  discovered  traces  of  the  mysterious  aard-vaark, 
brought  us  back  to  the  Molo.  There  yet  remained  a 
mountain- spur  to  cross,  and  here  troops  of  baboons,  some 
looking  as  big  as  human  beings,  watched  and  barked 
from  the  crags  above.      (An  "old-man"  baboon,  by  the 


60 


ON   SAFARI 


way,  when  actually  measured,  taj^ecl   5  ft.  Gj  ius.  from 
nose  to  outstretched  hind-feet — or  5  ft.  2  ins.  to  the  tip 


AAllD-YAAUK 


of  his  tail.^)    A  pair  of  Bateleur  eagles  soared  overhead, 

^  Since  writing  the  above,  T  find  that  the  baboons  of  British 
East  Africa  are  of  diiferent  species  from  the  common  dog-faced 
Chacma  baboon  (Papio  chacma)  of  South  Afiica.  This  Equatorial 
form  has  received  the  title  of  /-'.  iheanus.  The  measurements  above 
given  were  taken  from  a  Chacma  baboon. 


A   TWELFTH   ON   THE   EQUATOR 


61 


and  we  observed  in  this  gorge  birds  of  tlie  rock- sparrow 
kind  [Petronia),  as  well  as  numberless  guinea-fowl  of 
a  new  species,  with  a  tuft  of  curious  horny  bristles  set 
around  the  gape.  These  were  the  Abyssinian  helmeted 
guinea-fowl  {Numida  iJtUovliyncha),  which  swarmed  in 
the  thorn}'  scrub,  some  packs  apparently  running  to  fifty 
or  a  hundred  and  upwards. 

Beyond  that  spur  we  at  length  descried  the  fort  of 
Baringo — furthest  outpost,  in  this  direction,  of  British 
Empire. 

At  midday  on  August  17  we  encamped  on  the  little 
plain  below  the  Boma,  having  spent  nine  days  on  the 
march  from  Nakuru.  Here  we  presently  received  a 
most  hospitable  welcome  from  the  District-Commissioner 
(and  sole  white  inhabitant),  ]\Ir.  Geoffrey  Archer. 


NAMAQUA  DOVE  [(Ena  capensis). 
A  pigeon  no  bigger  than  a  AVagtail. 


CHAPTER  YI 

AFTER  ELEPHANT  AT  BAEINGO 

Two  bull-elepliants  having  been  reported  in  the 
neighbourhood,  we  rested  a  couple  of  days  at  Baringo 
awaiting  further  news  ;  but  the  native  trackers  sent  out 
to  locate  the  elephants  having  failed  to  do  so,  we 
resumed  our  march  northwards.  On  the  night  of 
August  20  we  were  encamped  beneath  the  conical  mass 
of  Njoro-llimalo  (or  Koodoo-Kop,  as  we  called  it,  owing 
to  the  stony  mountains  around  being  frequented  by 
these  superb  antelopes),  when  at  9  p.m.  three  "  askaris," 
or  native  soldiers,  came  into  camp  ^nth  a  letter  from 
Mr.  Archer  at  Baringo,  saying  that  an  Njemusi  hunter 
had  brought  in  news  of  a  huge  old  solitary  bull-elephant 
which  had  taken  up  his  quarters  near  Njemps,  on  the 
further  side  of  the  lake.  Archer  added  that,  as  he  was 
then  proceeding  on  duty  to  Njemps,  he  would  be  glad 
to  accompany  me  thither,  provided  I  returned  to  Baringo 
at  once.^ 

This  necessitated  an  entire  recasting  of  plans,  but 
arrangements  were  soon  made,  and  an  hour  before 
daylight  on  the  morrow,  under  a  waning  moon,  I  left 
my  brother  to  continue  his  solitary  journey  northwards 
to  the  Mugitani  River,  while  I  set  out  on  return  for 
Baringo.  Arriving  there  (four  hours'  march)  in  time  for 
breakfast.  Archer  and  I  at  once  started  for  Njemps, 
re-crossing  first  the^mountain-spur,  and  then  the  liat 
plains  towards  the  Molo  River.  This  river,  we  were 
told,  was  only  waist-deep,  so  we  proceeded  to  walk 
through,    sending   some    natives   in    advance    to    shift 

^  See  sketch-map  at  p.  75,  infra. 
62 


AFTER   ELEPHANT   AT   BARINGO  63 

possible  crocodiles.  AVitli  some  dismay,  however,  we 
found,  on  reaching  what  had  appeared  to  be  the  opposite 
bank,  that  we  had  merely  crossed  a  shallow  by-stream, 
that  the  apparent  bank  was  an  island,  and  that  the 
main  river  still  ran,  broad  and  deep,  before  us.  There 
was  nothing  for  it  but  to  swim,  and  this  we  proceeded 
to  do,  ao'ain  sendino-  an  advance-Q-uard  of  blacks  as  a 
precautionary  measure.  Our  rifles  and  ammunition 
came  through  all  right ;  but,  in  spite  of  every  care,  our 
clothes  (carried  aloft  in  one  hand)  got  hopelessly  wet. 
Even  on  the  equator  one  does  not  care  to  dress  in 
soaking  garments,  and  we  therefore  both  marched  into 
Njemps,  three  miles  beyond,  arrayed  each  in  a  wet 
shirt,  a  sun-helmet  and  a  pair  of  boots.  Here  we  found 
the  local  chiefs  all  assembled  to  meet  H.M.'s  representa- 
tive, but  since  no  one  of  them  wore  anything  at  all,  our 
scanty  attire  created  no  scandal.  Njemps  is  a  strongly- 
stockaded  village,  with  many  rows  of  grass-built  huts 
inside  its  rampart  of  growing  thorns  and  surrounding 
moat,  and  we  encamped  beneath  the  historic  sycamores 
where,  less  than  twenty  years  previous,  Joseph 
Thomson,  the  first  explorer  of  Masailand,  had  rested 
after  his  adventurous  journey. 

Here,  again,  the  resonant  flute-like  song  of  the  bulbul 
struck  me  as  certainly  the  most  eff"ective  bird-melody  I  ever 
heard.     Specially  noticeable  was  it  just  before  sundown. 

That  afternoon,  while  Archer  held  "  shauri  "  with 
the  chiefs  and  collected  revenue,  I  went  to  look  for  the 
elephant  under  the  guidance  of  the  local  hunters,  and 
soon  found  his  mighty  spoor  of  the  night  before.  This 
we  followed  for  miles,  in  and  out,  always  through 
comparatively  open  ground  and  loose  forest,  highly 
favourable  for  our  attack  had  the  elephant  been  there, 
but  he  was  not.  It  became  evident  that,  althouo-h  he 
might  come  hither  every  night  to  feed,  he  had  some 
other  stronghold  to  which  he  retired  by  day.  We  saw 
many  waterbuck  in  these  forests,  though  no  really  good 
heads,  and  a  superb  pair  of  white-headed  fish-eagles 
{Haliaetus  vocifer)  kept  screaming  and  circling  overhead. 


64  ON   SAFARI 

Both  the  woods  of  Njemps  and  the  marshes  of  the 
Molo  that  adjoined  them  swarmed  with  strange  birds 
and  unknown  w^ater-fowh  Gladly  would  I  have  spent 
more  time  in  investigating  these,  but  the  major  quest 
forbade.  There  were  squawking  bronze -green  parrots — 
I  took  these  to  be  parrots — an  elusive  cuckoo  with  ruddy 
breast  that  betrayed  his  genus  by  a  muffled  note,  but 
avoided  all  save  a  fugitive  glance.  There  were  wood- 
peckers great  and  small — some  no  bigger  than  creepers ; 


EAEBET. 

Colours  gold,  lemon  and  crimson,  black  and  white, 

barbets — thick-set,  "  dumpy  "  birds,  in  coloration  akin  to 
the  last,  thouo;h  so  different  in  habit :  bush-shrikes  and 
babblers;  tiny  warbler-like  "white-eyes"  {Zosterops), 
cousins  of  the  sun-biids  ;  colies  in  little  jDarties,  and 
glossy  starlings  {Lamprocolius),  the  latter  nesting  in 
hollow  trees  as  starlings  do  at  home.  In  the  marshes 
we  noticed  various  herons  and  egrets,  spur-wing  plovers, 
common  and  other  sandpipers,  kingfishers  azure  and 
pied,  rails  and  chestnut-red  jacanas. 

Next  morning  our  scouts  were  away  before  dawn, 
but  I  was  glad  to  be  told  that  an  early  start  was  not 
necessary,  since,  having  tramped  over  thirty  miles  the 
previous  day,  I  wanted  an  "  easy."  At  ten  o'clock  a 
little  wizened  savage  (the  same  who  had  brought  the 
first  news  to  Baringo)  came  in  and  reported  he  had 
actually  seen    the   elephant   at   dawn,  that   he  was  an 


AFTER  ELEPHANT  AT  BARINGO 


65 


enormous  old  tusker  with  heavy  ivory,  and  that  he 
had  marked  him  into  his  resting-place  for  the  day. 
Enthusiasm  rose  to  fever  pitch,  and  in  five  minutes  we 
were  off,  Archer,  having  now  completed  his  "  shauris  " 
(palaver)  with  the  Njemusi  chiefs,  being  able  to 
accompany  me.  I  was  glad  of  this,  for  I  was  totally 
unequipped  as  regards  weapons  for  such  heavy  and 
dangerous  game,  my  most  powerful  rifle  being  a  double 
*303.  That  the  '303  is  quite  capable  of  kilHng  the 
African  elephant  I  am  well  aware  ;  Mr.  F.  C.  Selous  has 


A    MOrSE-GEEY   COLY    [CoUus)    AT   XJEMPS. 


proved  that,  and  for  many  years  my  late  friend  Arthur 
Neumann  "  used  no  other."  But  these  are  exceptionally 
practised  hunters,  of  lifelong  experience,  and  in  choosing 
this  small  bore  they  relied  also  upon  choosing  their 
shots.  It  is  a  very  diff'erent  matter  for  an  amateur  for 
the  first  (and  perhaps  the  only)  time  in  his  life  to 
withstand  the  onset  of  an  enraged  elephant  with  so  tiny 
a  tool.  I  speak  from  knowledge,  for  I  did  it,  and  owe 
it  merely  (under  Providence)  to  a  flaw  in  a  fickle, 
shifty  wdnd  that  I  am  here  to  write  the  experience. 
Archer,  however,  had  a  single  '400,  a  far  more  powerful 
weapon. 


66  ON   SAFARI 

After  proceeding  some  miles  in  a  northerly  direction, 
I  began  to  perceive  a  change  in  the  character  of  the 
country,  forest  and  scrub  giving  place  to  "  elephant- 
grass."  Grass  ?  Well,  when  stuff  grows  to  a  height  of 
ten  or  twelve  feet  in  masses  so  solid  and  strong  that  one 
cannot  force  a  way  through  it,  such  plants  should  have 
another  name  than  that  of  the  humble  greenery  of  a 
lawn.  For  a  time  I  did  not  realise  the  full  import  of 
the  change,  but  imagined  that  these  giant  clumps 
through  which  we  were  seeking  a  path  were  merely  a 
casual  local  phenomenon,  and  that  we  should  presently 
get  past  them.  I  soon  was  undeceived.  This  was 
"elephant-grass";  it  extended  for  untold  leagues, 
encircling  the  southern  shores  of  Lake  Baringo,  and  it 
was  rigrht  in  the  midst  of  such  a  fastness  that  our  friend 
the  elephant  had  selected  his  stronghold.  This  grass- 
forest,  full  ten  feet  in  height,  with  tassellecl  flowering 
tops  towering  above  that,  was  absolutely  impenetrable 
to  human-kind,  save  only  by  following  the  old  tracks  of 
elephant  or  buffalo,  and  these  in  places  were  almost 
obliterated.  One's  progress,  moreover,  was  constantly 
intercepted  by  broken-down  thorn-trees.  How  they  got 
there  1  could  not  surmise,  but  one  had  to  climb  over  or 
squeeze  under  them,  and  not  a  yard  could  one  see  in 
any  direction,  save  only  a  narrow  crevice  of  sky  above, 
with  the  broiling  sun  right  overhead.  Naturally  the 
naked,  affile  savages  o-ot  throusfh  this  awful  stuff  far 
quicker  than  we  could  follow  ;  yet  it  was  absolutely 
necessary  to  keep  in  touch  with  them — or  be  lost. 

At  length  the  elephant  was  reported  to  be  within 
sight,  and  by  climbing  a  dead  tree  (infested  by  biting 
ants)  I  indistinctly  descried  portions  of  a  vast  grey 
bulk  beneath  some  flat- topped  thorns,  distant  400 
yards.  Even  that  last  short  space  gave  trouble, 
for  in  the  depths  of  that  grass-forest  we  suddenly 
came  on  the  river  Tigerish,  a  deep,  muddy  stream, 
with  perpendicular  banks  like  a  canal.  This,  though 
barely  ten  yards  broad,  we  had  to  swim.  In  the  over- 
hanging bushes  colonies  of  weaver-finches  had  nests,  some 


AFTER   ELEPHANT   AT   BARINGO 


a 


of  which  contained  eggs  resembling  those  of  our  sparrow, 
but  speckled  with  a  violet  tinge  ;  in  others  the  young 
were  hatched. 

The  next  view  of  our  elephant  was  from  a  thorn- 
tree  at  seventy  yards.  He  stood  quiescent,  his  enormous 
ears  flapping  to  keep  ofi"  the  flies.  Omitting  details  of 
detours  necessitated  or  suggested  by  varying  airs,  at 
last  I  found  m3'self  watching  this  giant  beast  (from  a 
tree)  within  thirty  yards.  Only  the  ridge  of  his  back 
and  huge  ears  were  visible  above  the  tall  grass,  all  in 
deep  shade,  and  I  was  debating  w^ithin  myself  what  was 


WEAVER-FINCHES     NESTS< 


the  right  course  to  pursue,  enjoying  the  novel  sight  and 
trying  to  recollect  all  that  the  great  elephant-hunters 
had  advised.  Already  Archer,  very  rightly,  had  raised  a 
question  of  the  wisdom  of  "  taking  on  "  a  solitary  old  bull 
under  such  conditions ;  but  I  only  reflected  on  the  forty 
miles  we  had  come,  the  rivers  swum,  the  game  in  view, 
and  had  not  realised  the  full  import  of  his  remark  nor  the 
danger  of  this  venture.  The  perception  was  not  long  de- 
layed. A  distinct  and  continued  pufi'  of  wind  on  the  back 
of  my  neck  brought  it  home.  One  moment  later  that  ere- 
whiles  somnolent  elephant  was  all  alert.  Up  in  air  full 
twenty  feet  towered  the  great  trunk,  its  point  deflected 
hither  and  thither  to  pick  up  those  grains  of  scent  in  the 


68  ON   SAFAEI 

traitor  breeze.  The  next  moment  he  was  gone  as  by 
magic,  vanishing  from  sight  as  silently  as  a  rabbit.  I 
feared  he  had  gone  for  ever,  but  instinctively  climbed 
down  a  branch  or  two,  remaining  in  a  position  whence 
I  could  still  see  over  the  grass,  yet  could  jump  to  the 
ground  at  once. 

What  really  passed  through  the  elephant's  mind 
during  the  succeeding  moments  I  would  dearly  like  to 
know.  If  at  first  (as  certainly  seemed  to  me)  he  had, 
for  a  second,  resorted  to  precipitate  flight,  that  plan  was 
almost  instantly  rejected,  for  immediately  thereafter  the 
crashing  of  the  jungle  told  us  he  was  coming,  and  then 
the  great  square  forehead  appeared,  towering  above  the 
jungle,  as  he  rushed  directly  upon  us.  I  had  jumped 
down  from  the  tree ;  Archer  was  five  yards  to  my  left, 
with  the  elephant  almost  straight  above  him,  when  the 
charge  stopped.  We  presumed  the  great  beast  had  lost 
the  wind.  What  now  confronted  us,  some  ten  yards 
away,  resembled  the  hoary  grey  tower  of  a  village 
church.  Under  a  midday,  equatorial  sun  {almost 
vertical)  there  is  no  shade  to  define  angles  and  thus 
indicate  the  vital  spots,  nor  was  there  any  time  to 
consider.  I  placed  my  tiny  "303  bullet  on  the  temple  as 
near  as  I  could  judge  at  the  point  given  in  the  "  rules," 
i.e.  "  half-way  between  eye  and  orifice  of  ear  "  (though 
I  could  neither  see  eye  nor  orifice,  and  the  ear  was  as 
big  as  a  barn-door).  Archer,  being  directly  in  front, 
tried  the  forehead  shot,  aiming  at  base  of  trunk.  These 
stunning  blows  at  least  turned  him  off"  us,  for  the 
elephant  swerved  to  the  left  and  disappeared.  In  a 
w^ay,  this  was  a  relief,  but  it  was  also  disappointing. 

Hardly,  however,  had  I  got  the  empty  cartridge 
replaced  than  the  beast  was  on  us  again.  This  time  he 
crashed  across  us  from  left  to  right;  luckily  he  had 
(very  slightly)  misjudged  his  point,  and  thus  passed  us 
a  few  paces  in  front  of  our  actual  positions.  We  each 
put  our  bullets  into  the  side  of  his  head,  almost  at  the 
inuzzle  of  our  rifles.  Archer  his  single  '400  ball,  and  I 
my  two  'SOS's,  followed  up  by  two  "  solids"  from  the 


NEARLY   CAUGHT. 


AFTER   ELEPHANT   AT   BARINGO  69 

"450  (an  old  black-powder  rifle)  before  losing  sight.  T 
had  thus  placed  one  ball  in  the  left,  four  in  the  right 
side  of  his  head,  Archer  one  in  the  latter  part  and  one 
in  the  forehead — seven  in  all.  No  effect  whatever  was 
produced,  so  far  as  we  saw.  But  our  men,  who  now 
climbed  into  trees,  at  once  reported  that  the  beast  w^as 
going  very  sick,  and,  a  minute  later,  that  he  had 
stopped  altogether.  This  we  soon  verified  for  ourselves, 
seeing  him  at  a  standstill  among  the  long  grass  some 
300  yards  distant. 

What  should  we  do  now?  Never  again,  after  this 
experience,  would  I  follow  him  up  in  that  fearful 
grass,  where  he  has  one  as  in  a  trap,  for  a  man  cannot 
move  a  yard  to  right  or  left,  whereas  an  elephant  goes 
through  it  as  if  walking  in  a  meadow.  We  decided  on 
a  policy  of  "  masterly  inactivity,"  leaving  the  wounded 
elephant  to  die  quietly  (as  we  hoped)  where  he  stood, 
our  scouts  being  posted  in  trees  to  watch  him,  while  we 
proceeded  to  have  our  lunch. 

Presently  our  elephant  slowly  moved  into  some  very 
heavy  thorn -jungle  beyond.  How  he  crossed  the  deep 
donga  of  the  Tigerish  River  (which  we  had  to  swim 
a  second  time)  we  could  not  see.  Here  we  had  a  bit  of 
bad  luck.  Probably  our  trackers  pressed  on  too  fast ; 
anyway  the  beast  retreated  on  his  heel-tracks,  and  we 
lost  an  hour  before  recovering  the  spoor  behind  us. 
He  now  left  the  grass-forest  and  entered  a  stretch  of 
thick,  low  thorn-scrub,  most  laborious  and  painful  to 
traverse.  The  day  was  far  spent,  and  of  intense  heat 
and  hard  going  I  had  had  enough,  and  returned  to  camp 
at  four  o'clock.  Archer  followed  on,  first  into  the 
swampy  ground  adjoining  Lake  Baringo,  thence  wheel- 
ing to  the  left  as  the  spoor  turned  due  west,  as  if  the 
wounded  beast  meant  to  seek  refuge  in  the  Kamasea 
Mountains,  which  closed  the  horizon  some  six  miles 
away.  In  that  case  we  knew  he  was  lost  to  us.  Next; 
day,  however,  the  tracks  showed  that  he  had  not  dared 
to  face  the  mountains,  but  had  held  to  the  south  some 
twenty  miles  down  the  valley,  where  he  had  entered  a 


70  ON   SAFARI 

huge  morass,  a  league  in  diameter,  choked  with  reeds 
and  flags,  and  with  water  three  to  four  feet  deep — 
possibly  far  more — and  swarming  with  leeches.  To 
explore  this  Archer  sent  men  back  to  the  lake  to  carry 
canoes  hither,  twenty  miles,  and  we  offered  a  reward  of 
two  cows  for  the  recovery  of  the  ivory. 

There  ends,  so  far  as  our  knowledge  goes,  the  storj^ 
of  our  elephant.  It  seemed  certain  that  the  sick  beast 
would  die  wherever  he  took  final  refuge,  and  this  con- 
viction was  confirmed  by  a  letter  sent  me  a  few  days 
later :  "  The  latest  news  of  your  elephant  is  that  he  was 
seen,  very  sick,  making  for  Magi-Moto  or  the  swamp 
beyond.  The  natives  are  still  on  his  spoor,  so  I  trust 
you  will  have  the  satisfaction  of  receiving  the  ivory  on 
5^our  return  here."  Yet  no  monster  tusks  were  ever 
sent  in  to  the  fort  at  Baringo.  Whether  the  Njemusi 
really  failed  to  find  the  beast,  or  whether  they  recovered 
him  and  said  nothing,  we  could  not  be  certain.  But, 
sad  to  tell,  these  primitive  savages  are  already  beginning 
to  understand  differences  in  value,  and  to  distino-uish 
between  a  pair  of  tusks  worth,  perhaps,  £80  to  £100 
sterling,  and  a  couple  of  cows  only  worth  as  many 
rupees. 

The  sensation  of  failure,  after  the  prolonged  excite- 
ment, risk  and  labour  was  sickening  enough ;  twice  we 
had  been  within  less  than  ten  yards  of  one  of  the  grand- 
est beasts  in  all  Africa,  and  had  failed  to  secure  him ; 
5^et  we  could  not  but  feel  thankful  that  we  had  come 
out  of  it  unharmed.  Both  those  terrible  charges  had 
been  full  of  mischief  and  malice,  and  we  had  only 
escaped,  in  either  case,  through  a  mere  lucky  flaw  or 
slant  in  the  wind.  My  impression  was  that  the  danger 
is  more  real  with  elephant  (and,  in  minor  degree,  with 
rhino)  than  with  lion.  For  the  big  carnivora  in- 
variably give  one  the  first  chance,  and  that  ought,  in 
their  case,  with  modern  weapons  and  short  range,  to  be 
decisive  ;  whereas  this  elephant  charged  at  once,  with 
full  intent  to  kill,  before  we  had  molested  him  in  the 
smallest  degree,  beyond  getting  in  his  wind.     Moreover, 


AFTER   ELEPHANT   AT   BARINGO  71 

though  he  had  just  received  two  cordite-driven  bullets 
in  his  head,  he  instantly,  within  fifteen  seconds,  repeated 
his  charo-e  a  second  time,  and  after  all,  with  some  seven 
balls  in  his  head,  travelled  upwards  of  twenty  miles 
almost  without  stopping. 

Subsequently  Archer  wrote  me  that,  a  fortnight 
later,  during  his  absence  on  duty,  an  immense  bull- 
elephant,  carrying  tusks  of  90 -lbs.  apiece,  had  come 
down  to  the  water  at  Magi-Moto  and  had  died  there ! 
It  was  not,  of  course,  proved  that  this  was  our  elephant, 
though  the  probability  amounted  to  no  less  than  a 
moral  certainty.  Unluckily,  owing  to  Archer's  absence, 
the  ivory  disappeared,  falling  into  the  hands  of  some 
Swahili  traders. 

The  foregoing  serves  incidentally  to  show  how  easy 
it  is  for  an  elephant — or  for  a  herd  of  elephants, 
enormous  as  is  their  bulk — to  exist  unseen  ;  as  easy  as 
for  a  rabbit  at  home,  so  dense  and  far-spreading  is  the 
tropical  jungle  !  Another  illustration  of  this  fell  within 
my  own  knowledge.  Two  Englishmen  had  gone  snipe- 
shooting  on  a  marsh  bordered  by  comparatively  narrow 
belts  of  heavy  reed.  For  some  hours  they  had  been 
shooting  away  merrily,  when  from  these  reeds  hard  by 
there  emerged  a  whole  herd  of  elephants  quietly  moving 
off  in  search  of  a  less  noisy  siesta. 

A  point  that  struck  me  during  our  sojourn  at 
Njemps  was  the  inveterate  laziness  of  the  native 
savages.  Each  morning,  shortly  after  dawn,  groups  of 
them  assembled  at  certain  spots,  each  man  bringing 
a  "  cracket,"  or  low  three-legged  stool,  whereon  he 
squatted,  his  spear  stuck  in  the  ground  within  arm's- 
length  ;  there  they  sat  the  livelong  day,  neither  talking, 
working  nor  even,  apparently,  thinking — simply  idling 
away  the  hours  and  the  days.  Those  groups  which 
squatted  thus  around  our  tents  might  perhaps  be 
presumed  to  be  in  consultation  with  H.M.'s  representa- 
tive ;  but  all  over  the  village  sat  other  groups  similarly 
"  employed. '  The  Njemusi  are  stated  to  be  a  degenerate 
offshoot  of  the  Masai — "  degenerate  "  because  they  affect 


72  ON   SAFARI 

agricultiire,  work  with  wliicli  the  noble  Masai  never 
demeans  himself.  Here,  outside  the  stockades,  there 
tvas  a  patch  of  cultivation  whereon  I  observed  a  few 
women  and  boys  working  in  listless  fashion.  The  out- 
ward and  visible  sion  of  "work"  consisted  in  their 
having  rude  hoes  and  spades ;  but  two-thirds  of  the 
labourers  lay  sleeping  in  the  sun.  Here  amidst  African 
wilds  one  does  find  in  real  life  that  race  which  Socialist 
tub-thumpers,  with  customary  inexactitude,  delight  in 
denouncing  at  home  as  the  "idle  rich." 


CHAPTER   VII 

BEYOND    BAEINGO 

(l)    AFTER    ORYX    AND    ELAXD 

Now  that  Barino-o  is  becomino*  a  favourite  resort  of 
big-game  liimters,  it  is  interesting  to  recall  that  but  a 
score  of  years  ago  the  region  was  unknown.  The  first 
white  explorer  to  reach  its  shores  was  Joseph  Thomson, 
who,  writing  in  1885,  thus  described  it:  "The  mys- 
terious lake  of  Bariuo'o,  thouo;h  lono-  heard  of,  has  been 
a  delightful  bone  of  contention  between  geographers  at 
home,  who  have  drawn  it  in  various  phases  with  the 
large  and  liberal  hand  characteristic  of  those  who  are 
guided  by  their  inner  consciousness  and  a  theoretic  eye. 
{Sometimes  it  was  comparable  to  the  Nyanza  in  size  ;  at 
other  times  it  had  no  existence.  Then  it  knocked 
around  the  map  a  bit,  being  now  tacked  on  to  Victoria 
Nyanza,  anon  separated  therefrom,  or  only  connected 
by  a  thin  watery  line.  After  all  this  shuttlecock  work. 
Lake  Baringo  proves  to  be  an  isolated  basin,  sunnily 
smiling  up  at  its  great  parents,  the  shaggy,  overhanging 
ranges  of  Kamasea  and  Laikipia.  In  extreme  length  the 
lake  is  eiohteen  miles,  and  in  breadth  ten  miles."  ^ 

Baringo  has  now  acquired  not  only  a  fixed  position 
in  geography,  but  even  a  niche  in  history.  A  British 
station  was  first  established  on  the  Ribo  Hills  to  the 
north  of  the  lake  ;  and  this  led  to  bloodv  fio-htino-.  Two- 
thnxls  of  the  native  garrison,  having  been  treacherously 
decoyed  away,  were  surrounded  and  speared  to  a  man 
by  overwhelming  swarms  of  the  Jabtulail  and  Turkana 

^  Through  Masailaml,  p.  533. 
73 


74  ON   SAFARI 

tribes.  These,  flushed  with  victory,  dashed  on  the 
British  post ;  but  its  solitary  white  occupant,  Mr.  Hyde 
Baker,  aided  by  a  handful  of  Nubian  askaris,  held  the 
savages  at  bay  for  five  days,  till  assistance  arrived. 
Such  incidents — merely  the  grinding  of  the  mill  of 
progress — are,  T  presume,  printed  in  Blue-books,  but 
seldom  reach  the  average  British  reader. 

Baringo  now  enjoys  the  reputation  of  being  one  of 
the  most  favoured  regions  in  the  British  Protectorate  in 

O 

respect  of  its  big  game.  There  remains,  nevertheless, 
room  for  disappointment.  For  so  extensive,  and  as  yet 
so  little  understood,  are  the  migratory  movements  of 
the  antelope-tribe,  as  also  of  giraff"e,  rhino  and  other 
game-animals,  that  a  district  which  swarms  with  them 
one  month  may  be  found  deserted  the  next.  The 
materials  at  present  available  are  too  scanty  either  to 
determine  the  extent  and  dates  of  these  migrations,  or 
to  correlate  them  with  seasonal  or  other  causes.  It  is 
one  object  of  these  chapters  to  contribute  thereto  such 
gleams  of  light  as  were  furnished  by  our  experiences  at 
Baringo  and  elsewhere  in  East  Africa. 

Shortly  before  leaving  England,  I  had  received  a 
letter  from  Major  C.  S.  Cumberland,  who  was  then  at 
Baringo,  that  he  was  disappointed  with  that  district. 
He  wrote  as  follows :—"  Baringo,  March  29  [1904]. 
This  is  sujDposed  to  be  a  good  game-country,  but  I  have 
seen  very  little,  and  what  there  is,  having  been  much 
hunted,  is  very  wild.  It  will  give  you  an  idea  of  what 
this  country  is  like  this  year  to  say  that  I  have  not 
halted  in  any  one  of  my  camps  for  more  than  one  day. 
In  my  opinion  the  beasts  have  shifted  owing  to  the 
drouo'ht." 

Under  the  impression  that  if  March  were  unfavour- 
able, August  might  prove  to  be  the  reverse,  we  reached 
Baringo  in  the  latter  month.  On  arrival,  Mr.  Archer 
told  us  that  five  or  six  weeks  earlier,  at  the  end  of  the 
rains,  game  had  been  extremely  abundant  a  few  marches 
to  the  northward.  Thus  an  entry  in  his  diary  on  July 
11  mentions  seeino-  during-   the  mornino-,  while  ridino; 


AFTER   ORYX   AND   ELAND— BARINGO     75 

soutliwards  towards  the  Miigitani  River,  two  herds  of 
50  and  80  oryx  respectively,  11  giraffes  and  2  elands; 


SKETCH-MAr   OF   BAIIINGO. 


while  the  same  evenino-  he  rode  within  sio-ht  of  some 
300  elands,  100  oryx,  32  girafi'es  and  3  rhino,  besides 


7Q  ON   SAFAEI 

the  ordinary  game.  Our  own  experiences,  five  weeks 
later,  were  as  follows. 

To  begin  with,  I  fell  in  with  one  of  those  unpleasant 
adventures  that  are  incidental  to  African  travel.  As 
related  in  the  last  chapter,  I  had  left  my  brother  to 
continue  his  march  northwards  towards  the  Mugitani 
Piiver  while  1  made  a  back-cast  of  thirty  miles  to  Njemps 
after  elephant.  Returning  thence,  on  the  evening  of  the 
fourth  day  I  had  reached  the  neighbourhood  of  the  sj^ot 

where,    by   arrangement,    I    expected    to    find    W 

encamped,  when  one  of  those  violent  thunderstorms 
characteristic  of  the  equator  suddenly  burst.  Being 
unable,  in  elemental  cataclysm,  amidst  roaring  winds, 
thunder  and  hissing  rain,  either  to  find  the  river  or  to 
get  response  to  our  signal-shots,  I  ordered  camp  to  be 
pitched  exactly  where  I  stood.  Then  a  new  difiiculty 
arose.  The  heavily-laden  safari,  struggling  against  the 
storm,  had  got  separated  and  half  lost  among  the  bush, 
the  confusion  being  accentuated  by  running  into  a  herd  of 
half-wild  Suk  cattle,  the  longest-horned  and  most  trucu- 
lent beasts  I  ever  saw^.  One  by  one,  or  in  scattered 
groups,  the  safari  straggled  in,  but,  of  course,  the  "  boy  " 
with  the  tent-poles  was  last  to  arrive.  Thus  it  was  two 
hours  after  dark  ere  I  got  shelter  under  canvas,  and  turned 
in  supperless — bar  a  tin  of  sardines  and  a  pint  of 
"  emergency  "  champagne  ! 

The  storm  moderatino-  at  midnioht,  we  got  in  touch 
with  my  brother's  camp,  which  proved  to  be  little  more 
than  an  hour's  march  away ;  and  in  the  morning,  to  our 

mutual  relief,  W walked  across  in  time  for  breakfast. 

The  Mugitani  at  this  point,  as  we  discovered  by  daylight, 
is  little  more  than  a  series  of  mud-holes  connected  by 
subterranean  channels.  No  w^onder  we  had  failed  to 
find  it  in  the  darkness  and  stress  of  the  night  before. 

My  brother  reported  having  seen  a  herd  of  eland 
and  some  oryx,  but  the  latter  were  scarce  and  very  wild. 
The  only  game  he  had  killed  were  impala.  Grant's 
gazelle  (the  local  race,  G.  g.  hrighti),  a  kori  bustard, 
and  a  zebra  for  meat.     But  a  notable  occurrence  had 


'  J      1    ,     '       >        5        1 

■>  >      J    '    )       )  ij 

1    >  1  >      O  ■)  1 


)  »  55^i>0 


,5,33  33 
,  3,33  3,3 
J    3  3     3    3     '    > 


o 
o 

<; 

1^ 


AFTER   ORYX   AND   ELAND— BARINGO     11 

befallen.  He  had  come  across  a  gigantic  pig  which 
dwarfed  the  big  wart-hogs  (animals  we  saw  daily)  into 
comparative  insignificance.  Wo  had  neither  of  us  at 
that  time  heard  of  the  existence  of  the  giant  forest- 
hog  {Hylochoerus)  recently  discovered  in  these  regions, 
and  described,  from  some  fragments  of  skin  and  bone, 
in  the  Proceedings   of  the  Zoological  Society,   1904, 


KOKI    BrSTAIU). 

Male  :  weight  ■251bs.,  span  8  ft.,  has  head  like  a  bittern. 

p.  193,  though  I  now  remembered  having  hastily  glanced 
throu2;h  these  a  nioiit  or  two  before  sailing;.  Whether  the 
animal  seen  here  was  Hylochoerus,  or  otherwise,  remains 
unproven  ;  but  the  following  is  my  brother's  narrative — 
"  It  was  on  the  Mugitani  River  that  I  had  my  first 
sight  of  elands.  Leaving  camp  at  daybreak,  we  had 
traversed  the  scattered  forest  that  covers  the  bush- 
tangled,  boulder-strewn  hills  above  that  river,  and  come 
upon  a  level  plain,  a  mile  across,  stretching  to  the  foot- 
hills of  Laikipia  beyond.    Upon  this  plain  was  a  herd  of 


78  ON   SAFARI 

elands  about  fifty  strong,  mostly  females  and  young 
beasts,  but  including  a  single  large  bull  whose  brisket 
appeared  to  sweejD  the  ground.  They  had  not  noticed 
us,  and  their  onward  direction  indicated  that  they  would 
feed  past  quite  near.  What  slight  wind  there  was  blew 
in  our  favour,  so  we  lay  down  in  the  deep  grass  and 
waited.  Presently  the  whole  herd  filed  past  from  left  to 
right  within  easy  shot.  The  big  bull  was,  as  usual,  last 
of  all,  and  came  on  ver}'-  slowly,  often  stopping.  AVhether 
some  breath  of  suspicion  were  aroused  or  not,  it  is 
impossible  to  say;  but  it  certainly  did  happen  that 
before  the  great  bull  had  arrived  opposite  our  position, 
first  one  small  beast,  then  another,  quietly  dropped 
astern  of  the  herd  and  so  surrounded  his  majesty  that 
there  remained  absolutely  no  point  of  his  person  on  which 
we  could  get  a  sight.  His  massive  stubby  horns  and 
the  line  of  his  back  were  the  only  indications  of  his 
being  there  at  all.  We  could  do  nothing  to  avert  a 
catastrophe,  so  lay  still,  and  the  elands  passed  out  of 
the  picture  in  the  same  slow,  dignified  order  in  which 
they  had  appeared.  They  simply  faded  away  within  the 
fastnesses  of  the  Laikipia,  and  our  efforts  all  that  day 
failed  to  brino;  us  ao;ain  within  touch  of  them. 

"  Next  morning,  skirting  this  plain  towards  the  north, 
we  first  spotted  a  bull  giraffe,  very  black,  but  as  he  was 
travelling  faster  than  we  could  follow,  we  took  no  further 
interest  in  him.  We  then  entered  a  glade  which 
traversed  the  forest,  and  were  approaching  its  outlet, 
when  my  eye  caught  something  moving  in  the  open 
beyond.  Immediately  thereafter  the  glade  was  occupied 
by  the  form  of  a  pig,  which  for  a  moment  of  time  stood 
gazing  towards  us — long  enough  for  me  to  see  that  this 
was  something  quite  out  of  the  common  in  the  pig  line. 
Reddish-brown  as  to  colour,  with  head  shaped  like  that 
of  a  bush-pig,  its  dimensions  were  what  arrested  atten- 
tion. Whether  by  some  optical  delusion  or  not  I  could  not 
say,  but  this  pig  certainly  appeared  to  me  to  stand  well- 
nigh  as  big  as  a  zebra,  say  near  four  feet  at  the  shoulder. 
It  was  gone  in  a  moment.     AVe  rushed  forward  to  get 


AFTEK  ORYX  AND  ELAND— BARINGO  79 

another  view ;  but  though  one  other  fairly  big  one  and 
three  or  four  small  bright-red  pigs  dashed  across  the 
glade,  we  never  again  set  eyes  on  the  first  monster. 

"  At  that  time  I  had  heard  nothing  of  Hylochoerus, 
the  unknown  species  that  is  said  to  inhabit  the  forests  of 
Man  and  Laikipia,  the  first  intimation  of  the  existence  of 
such  a  creature  only  reaching  me  when  my  brother 
rejoined  camp  a  few  days  later.  The  natives  assert  that 
these  huge  pigs  are  not  seen  beyond  the  mountain 
forests.  Possibly  the  prevailing  lack  of  water — which 
proved  our  main  difficulty  in  exploring  this  region — 
explained  their  being  driven  to  lower  ground  in  search 
thereof." 

The  drawing;  of  a  forest-hos;  overleaf  has  been 
prepared  by  Mr.  Caldwell  from  a  female  specimen 
recently  received  from  the  Man  Plateau  at  the  British 
Museum.  Features  that  strike  one  are  the  unusual 
size  of  the  nasal  disc ;  the  splayed-out,  warthog-like 
tusks ;  the  open  tear-duct ;  and  the  curious  tufts  of 
white  hairs  on  the  upper-lip.  The  body  is  covered 
with  long  black  bristles,  but  the  ears  are  not  tufted  as 
in  the  bush-pigs. 

On  the  following  morning  I  enjoyed  my  first  sight 
of  an  oryx,  a  lone  bull  moving  along  the  lower  slopes ; 
but  though  I  followed  him  for  hours,  far  into  the  stony 
hills,  never  got  within  half-a-mile.  In  case  the  fact 
may  possess  scientific  interest,  I  should  record  meeting 
with  a  hedgehog  during  this  stalk.  I  would  not  have 
noticed  it  among  long  grass  had  it  not  loudly  resented 
my  proximity.  In  size  it  resembled  our  British  species, 
and  its  spines  were  of  a  uniform  brown.  Well  I  knew 
that  my  duty  to  zoology  involved  taking  that  beast 
along ;  but,  in  the  midst  of  a  laborious  stalk,  it  was 
impossible  to  carry  that  spiky  specimen.  Cactus  and 
barbed  thorn  are  torment  enough,  without  having  a 
hedgehog  in  one's  pocket.  The  bushy  prairies  here- 
abouts swarmed  with  a  species  of  short- eared  owl,  very 
dark  in  colour,  probably  Asio  capensis ;  from  a  patch 


80 


ON   SAFARI 


of  lieatli-like  scrub,  a  couj)le  of  acres  in  extent,  I  put  up 
over  twenty.     Quails  also  abounded  ;  walking  alono-  the 


GIANT  roi:EST-HOG  {Eyloclicerus  meinertzhageni). 
A  female  from  the  Mau  Plateau. 

rushy  glades,  half-a-dozen  would  spring  at  every  step. 
These  were  Coturnix  delegorguii,  the  "harlequin  (juail, 
also  the  Kurrichaiue  button-quail.  Francolins  (Franco- 
linus  granti)  and  guinea-fowl  of  the  helmeted  Abyssinian 


AFTER   ORYX   AND   ELAND— BARINGO     81 

species  (Numida  j^f^^orhyncha)  were  as  numerous  as 
grouse  on  a  Northumbrian  moor. 

Our  main  objective  here  was  to  secure  the  oryx  and 
the  eland.  The  latter,  it  is  true,  may  be  found  at  less 
inaccessible  points ;  but  nowhere  in  East  Africa  can  the 
stately,  straight-horned  Oryx  heisa  be  found  within 
100  miles  of  the  railway.  Its  main  home  is  in  Somali - 
land  and  Abyssinia,  and  rarely  does  it  range  southward 
of  Baringo.  We  had  done  that  long  march  expressly  to 
secure  a  pair  of  oryx  apiece — that  being  the  limit  allowed 
by  law.  Yet  the  total  number  of  oryx  on  the  Mugitani 
at  this  date  (August)  was  certainly  under  a  dozen.  A 
single  giraffe  lingered  there,  while  of  elands  I  personally 
saw  none. 

We  therefore  held  on  to  the  Tangulwee,  a  day's 
march  northwards.  This  river,  which  forms  the  bound- 
ary of  the  Sugota  Game-reserve  (in  other  words,  all 
beyond  it  is  "sanctuary"),  has,  for  the  equator,  a  fair- 
sized  bed,  yet  was  stone-dry.  We  were  therefore  com- 
pelled to  fall  back  on  another  stream,  a  tiny  trickling 
burn,  hardly  recognisable  save  by  the  croaking  of  frogs, 
that  issues  from  the  Laikipia  Range,  and  was  called,  we 
understood,  the  Masai — a  most  unlikely  name,  as  w^e 
were  now  in  the  Suk  country,  far  beyond  Masailand.^ 
It,  however,  provided  our  prime  necessary — water ;  and 
from  its  banks,  though  game  was  far  from  abundant,  we 
enjoyed  many  memorable, days.  We  were,  at  this  point, 
the  northernmost  white  men  in  the  British  Protectorate, 
excepting  Arthur  Neumann,  who  was  still  many  marches 
to  the  northward — away  in  the  unknown  by  Lake 
Rudolph,  too  far  distant  for  an  afternoon  call. 

On  reaching  camp  that  evening,  our  men  told  us 
that  while  on  the  march  they  had  seen  a  lion  in  the  act 
of  stalking  some  zebras  feeding  near  the  edge  of  the 
bush. 

1  For  the  beautiful  photos  in  the  Suk  and  Turkana  countries 
here  reproduced,  my  readers  and  I  are  indebted  to  Mr.  G.  F.  Archer, 
who,  as  District-Commissioner,  controls  those  wild  regions  beyond 
Baringo. 

G 


82 


ON   SAFARI 


We  encamped  under  a  grove  of  huge  umbrella- 
topped  acacias  that,  at  a  little  distance,  remind  one  of 
Scotch  firs  at  home. 


♦V^t..,; 


GIRAFFE   BULL   AT   BARINGO. 


The  country  around  our  camp  was  thin  forest  of 
thorn  and  juniper,  opening  out  into  low  loose  mimosa- 
scrub,  easy  to  traverse  ;  and  beyond  this,  towards  the 
lake,  stretched  leagues  of  level  grassy  plain.  It  was  upon 
this  last  that  we  now  got  really  in  touch  with  Oryx 


AFTER   ORYX   AND   ELAND— BARINGO     83 

heisa.  There  were  not  many — only  nine  or  ten ;  and 
on  the  open  prairie  the  task  of  approach  appeared  well- 
nigh  hopeless. 

For  days  our  best  efforts  failed.  Then  (on  August 
27)  I  had  the  luck  to  find  a  pair,  bull  and  cow,  well 
within  the  fringe  of  mimosa-scrub  aforesaid.  After  a 
stalk  of  about  average  difficulty  I  fired  at  the  bull,  but 
missed.  This  shot  was  taken  through  the  horizontal 
branches  of  a  thin  thorn-bush,  and  as  it  was  not  much 


"beyond  the  low  aloes"  (oryx). 

over  100  yards,  the  ball  had  perhaps  been  deflected. 
Not  having  seen  us,  the  oryx,  after  one  long  burst, 
gradually  settled  down,  and  an  hour  later  I  came  up 
wdth  them  again.  They  now  stood  on  a  perfectly  open 
flat  of  hard,  bare,  sun-baked  mud.  Islanded  in  the 
midst  of  this  was  one  patch  of  spiky  aloes,  twenty  yards 
wide  and  three  feet  high.  Getting  this  in  line,  I  essayed 
that  terrible  crawl,  200  yards  of  cruel  going,  over  brazen 
clay  studded  with  flints  and  dwarf  cacti,  as  bad  as 
broken  bottles.  Yet  the  stalk  succeeded.  I  have  always 
attributed  that  success  to  a  remarkable  instance  of  mis- 
taken animal-instinct.     Far  out  on  the  flat  were  g-uazino- 


84  ON    SAFARI 

(presumably  on  flints)  a  group  of  Grant's  gazelles 
{Gazella  granti  hrighti — to  give  them  their  correct 
title).  These,  perceiving  us,  and  perhaps  mistaking  our 
khaki-clacl  forms,  prone  on  the  earth,  for  crouching 
lions,  advanced  to  mob  their  deadly  enemy  as  small 
birds  mob  a  hawk.  Their  short,  petulant  "  wuff,  wuff," 
attracted  my  attention,  and,  looking  round  through  eyes 
near  blinded  with  perspiration,  I  saw  a  score  of  these 
graceful  antelopes  within  fifty  yards,  angrily  barking 
and  stamping  their  slender  feet.  This  demonstration  was 
being  carried  out  in  full  view  of  our  oryx,  and  I  have 
no  doubt  monopolised  their  rapt  attention  during  the 
fateful  minutes  while  we  gained  the  shelter  of  the 
aloes. 

Thence,  aiming  between  intervals  of  the  spiky  aloe 
tops,  I  fired  the  shot  that  gave  me  my  first  oryx.  It 
was  the  female  that  fell,  with  a  bullet  high  on  tlie 
shoulder.  The  bull  bounced  off,  but  shortly  pulled  up, 
awaiting  his  consort.  The  distance  was  still  under 
200  yards,  and  I  might  at  once  have  secured  my  pair 
without  further  trouble,  but  for  the  freak  of  my  gun- 
bearer,  Elmi  Hassan.  He,  being  a  Somali  and  good 
Mohammedan,  must  needs  get  his  knife  into  any  animal 
before  it  was  actually  dead.  Consequently,  with  all  eyes 
on  "meat"  and  the  still  struo-orlino-  cow,  but  none  for 
the  grand  bull  standing  beyond,  he  was  already  racing 
in,  thus  ruining  my  chance  of  a  second  shot.  It  was 
not  the  first  time  he  had  offended  thus,  but  I  put  the 
matter  in  such  clear  terms  that  it  was  the  last.  This 
oryx  (female)  carried  horns  of  31  ins.  in  length,  span 
11  ins.  between  tips. 

As  the  bull  continued  to  hover  about  on  the  horizon, 
I  followed  on ;  but  after  two  hours'  pursuit  he  suddenly 
changed  his  mind  and  went  off  at  speed,  disappearing  in 
the  distance.  During  all  this  time  the  herd  of  gazelles 
had  kept  in  close  attendance  on  the  larger  animal,  and 
as  they  now  remained  alone  I  directed  my  attention  to 
them.  This  was,  perhaps,  rather  unhandsome  conduct, 
seeing  the  assistance  they  had  rendered  me  in  securing 


AFTER   ORYX   AND   ELAND— BARINGO     85 

my  oryx ;  but  the  lierd  contained  several  handsome 
heads,  and,  moreover,  I  was  then  under  a  totally  false 
impression  that  all  gazelles  north  of  Baringo  were 
G.  2^^tersi — a  new  species  to  me — and  not  G.  granti 
at  all.  I  had  been  so  assured,  and,  under  that  belief, 
proceeded  to  pick  out,  one  after  another,  the  four  finest 
heads  in  the  herd.  These  gazelles  apparently  realised 
no  danger  in  the  report  of  a  rifle,  for  they  merely  con- 
tinued their  stately  walk,  their  splendid  horns  nodding 
in  unison  with  each  step,  while  by  creeping  in  the  long- 
grass  parallel  with  their  file  I  secured  the  four  best 
bucks  within  a  space  of  200  yards.  These  four  heads 
taped  23^,  21f,  20  and  20  ins.  respectively,  span  of 
the  biggest  lOf  ins.,  and  are  as  good  as  any  to  be 
seen  in  the  Baringo  country. 

NOTE   OX    GRANT'S   GAZELLE 

Gi*ant's  gazelle,  it  is  now  recognised,  is  divisible  into  several 
distinct  local  races,  vai'ying  both  in  the  form  of  horn  and  also 
in  distribution  of  colour,  particularly  on  the  rump-patch  and  in 
the  depth  or  absence  of  dark  lateral  bands.  The  typical  form, 
Gazella  granti  tyjnca,  as  secured  by  us  on  the  Athi  Plains,  at 
Elmenteita  and  elsewhere,  carried  horns  up  to  25  ins.  in  length, 
with  an  extreme  span  between  tips  of  16  ins.  Such  are  average 
specimens.  Further  south,  on  the  Seringeti  and  Rhombo  Plains 
towards  Kilimanjaro,  much  larger  examples  are  recorded,  measuring 
28  to  30  ins.,  and  even  mor-e.     These  are  all  typical  G.  granti. 

On  the  western  boundary  of  German  East  Africa,  a  race  exists 
which  (while  the  horns  do  not  reach  25  ins.  in  length)  displays 
quite  an  extravagant  divergence,  the  span  between  tips  spreading 
out  to  27  and  28  ins. — a  breadth  which  obviously  alters  the  whole 
type  and  appearance  of  the  head,  as  shown  in  the  annexed  plate 
(p.  87).    This  latter  race  has  been  entitled  G.  g.  rohertsl. 

The  Baringo  gazelles  above  mentioned  are  G.  f/.  hrighti  ;  while 
on  the  Laikipia  Plateau  to  the  eastward  yet  another  form  is  recog- 
nised, distinguishable  from  the  typical  race  not  only  by  its  smaller 
size  and  shorter,  narrower  horns,  but  by  a  deeper  body-colour  and 
more  conspicuous  lateral  bands.  These  Laikipia  gazelles  have  been 
separated  as  G.  g.  notcda.  All  those  we  shot,  of  either  race,  possessed 
the  curious  tuft  of  bushy  hair  below  the  fore-knees. 

Peters'  gazelle  {G.  j^^tersi)  is  quite  a  different  animal,  much 
smaller  (intermediate  in  size  between  Grant's  and  Thomson's 
gazelles),  and  is  not  met  with  inland,  being  confined  to  the  coast 


86  ON   SAFARI 

region.  This  species  can  always  be  distinguished  by  the  fact  that 
the  fawn  colour  of  the  back  continues  down  to  the  tail,  and  is  not 
interrupted  by  the  white  of  the  rump-patch,  as  is  the  case  in  all 
forms  of  Grant's  gazelle. 

The  horns  of  Peters'  gazelle  average  from  20  to  22  ins.  in 
length,  and  ai'e  narrow,  almost  parallel,  the  usual  span  being  only 
6  to  9  ins.  between  tips,  as  shown  opposite. 

The  growth  of  the  horns  in  immature  examples  of  G.  g.  brigliti 
so  closely  resembles  in  form  the  horns  of  adult  G.  petersi  (as  will  be 
seen  in  the  drawing  on  p.  87),  that  it  is  hardly  surprising  if  we  were 
mistaken  in  identifying  these  species  at  Baringo. 

Next  morning  three  giraffes  were  visible  from  the 
look-out  koppie  near  our  camp,  but  these  great  animals 
possessed  no  attraction  for  us,  and  as  a  single  bull  oryx 
was  feeding  with  two  zebras  in  another  direction,  1  made 
for  these.  Oryx,  however,  j^roved  intensely  watchful 
and  wild,  and  defied  every  effort  both  of  my  brother 
and  myself  on  that  and  many  another  day. 

August  30  proved  my  red-letter  day.  I  began  with 
a  fairly  good  imj^ala  buck  (24|-  ins.)  close  to  camp,  and 
then,  after  expending  a  lot  of  wasted  energy  in  stalking 
a  zebra  that  both  Elmi  and  I,  in  the  early  light,  had 
mistaken  for  an  eland,  we  esj)ied  a  lone  oryx  bull  afar 
on  the  oj^en  prairie.  Beyond  him  was  a  second. 
Stalking,  strictly  speaking,  was  impossible ;  we  merely 
crouched  forward,  stooping  low,  and  with  Elmi's  arm 
around  my  shoulder.  While  thus  progressing,  the  two 
bulls,  having  closed  in,  began  to  fight.  I  heard  their 
horns  crash  together  repeatedly,  but  had  not  much 
opj^ortunity,  while  racing  ahead,  to  observe  closely  their 
mode  of  attack.  They  certainly  did  not  lower  their 
heads  to  the  ground,  as  they  are  reported  to  do  in 
receiving  the  charge  of  a  lion  (and  as  represented  at 
South  Kensington).  One  such  blow,  well  driven  home, 
must  mean  death.  They  rather  sparred  with  their  rapier- 
like horns,  each  seeking  to  gain  the  other's  Hank.  While 
the  oryx  were  thus  engrossed  I  got  in,  and  at  400  yards 
(estimated)  fired  both  barrels,  each  aimed  with  the 
utmost  care,  yet  without  the  slightest  effect  or  any 
apparent   notice   being  taken.       The    beasts  continued 


HORNS   OF   GAZELLES. 


A,  A,  A.— Grant's  Gazelle— Three  males,  typical  race. 
A.  9, —  ,,  Female  ,, 

B. —  ,,  Male  of  variety  G.  g.  roberfsi. 

C,  C. —  ,,  Two  young  males,  Baringo  race. 

D,  D,  D  9  . — Peters'    Gazelle — Two  males  and  a  female. 
E,  E  9  . — Thomson's  Gazelle — Male  and  female. 


88 


ON   SAFARI 


fighting. 

and    the 

tosfether 

position ; 

Laikipia. 

quished 

astern. 


Presently  the  bigger  bull  got  an  advantage, 

other   fled.       The    fighting   and   the   pursuit 

had    taken   us    some  miles  from  our  original 

we   were    now    close    under   the   foothills  of 

Here  at  last  the  champion  halted,  the  van- 

half-a-mile   beyond,    we    double  that   distance 

The  victor  had  pulled  up  just  beyond  a  little 


IMPALA. 


"Hardly  had  we  left  camp  in  the  dawn  than  a  lovely  apparition  showed  up  on 
the  sky-line  ahead."     (Got  him  in  the  neck:  horns  24 J  ins.) 

string  of  gazelles  that  were  feeding  across  the  plain.  I 
felt  that  if  only  those  gazelles  would  stand  I  would  get 
my  shot.  They  did  stand,  and,  firing  over  their  heads 
at  300  yards,  I  realised  the  fierce  joy  of  seeing  that 
noble  oryx  bull  drop  stone-dead  on  the  plain.  The 
ball  had  struck  the  orifice  of  the  ear,  entering  the  brain 
— not  a  shot  to  boast  of,  as  the  shoulder  had  been  my 
mark ;  yet  withal  no  more  magnificent  trophy  had  ever 
fallen  to  my  lot,  nor  a  keener  ambition  been  satisfied. 


AFTER   ORYX   AND   ELAND— BARINGO     89 

Of  the  many  splendid  forms  that  Nature  has  designed 
for  African  antelopes,  none  surpass  that  of  the  oryx. 
Strength  and  grace  combine  in  every  line.  A  massive 
chest  and  upright  neck,  deep,  yet  tapering  to  the  throat, 
are  completed  by  a  beautifully-proportioned  barrel  and 
strong  though  slightly  sloping  quarters.  It  is  in  this 
latter  respect  that  the  hartebeest  group  fall  away,  the 
exaggerated  slope  giving  them — one  is  loth  to  apply  a 
disparaging  epithet  to  such  fine  game — almost  an  un- 


^-;,,^ 


ORYX. 


gainly  appearance.  Of  the  former  type  none  but  the 
superb  sable  really  compares  on  equal  terms  with  the 
oryx,  and  the  roan  comes  second  to  this  pair.  The 
waterbuck,  it  is  true,  idealises  massive  elegance,  but  his 
type  is  different.  His  are  rather  the  four-square  lines 
of  a  red  deer  on  a  grander  scale. 

My  prize  carried  horns  of  31  j  ins.,  with  a  basal 
circumference  of  just  under  7  ins.  His  hide  was  scarred 
with  wounds  from  a  score  of  fights,  and  from  the  skin 
of  his  neck,  which  was  near  2  ins.  thick  (thus  difi"ering 
from  that  of  the  cow,  which  was  cpite  thin-skinned),  I 
cut  an  imbedded  bullet  of  some  previous  hunter.  The 
weio-ht  of  this  oryx  bull  we  estimated  at  450  lbs.,  the 
female  about  400  lbs.     Returning  towards  camp — and 


90 


ON   SAFARI 


a  tliree-liours'  tramp  in  the  midday  heat  possessed  no 
terrors  that  morning — a  nightjar  rose  at  my  feet  from 
its  two  eggs,  lying  on  bare  ground.  This  was  the  small 
African  species  {I  believe  Caprimidgus  donaldsoni) 
whose  loud  "  hoo,  hoo,"  awakens  the  echoes  throughout 


the  livelong  night. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

BEYOND   BARINGO 
(ll)    TWO    RHINOS 

That  same  afternoon  when  I  had  secured  my  oryx 
bull,  after  the  usual  midday  rest  in  camp  we  went  out 
separately  in  search  of  Gazella  petersi,  being  still  under 
the  false  impression  that  that  species  was  the  gazelle  of 
Baringo.  While  I  was  busy  "  glassing  "  a  small  herd, 
Elmi  suddenly  turned  on  me,  and  I  knew  by  the  fire  in 
his  eye  what  was  coming.  "I  see  rhino,"  he  said. 
The  huge  beast  was  standing  about  400  yards  away 
in  a  grassy  glade — a  sort  of  broad  grass  street  bor- 
dered on  either  side  by  a  line  of  low  thorn-bush.  I 
was  unprepared,  having  only  five  "solid"  cartridges 
with  me  ;  but,  as  it  was  too  late  to  send  back  to  camp 
for  more,  I  decided  to  take  on  the  rhino  at  once.  On 
reaching  the  grass  street  the  rhino  had  disappeared.  I 
therefore  proceeded  along  the  windward  side  of  the  open, 
keeping  close  under  the  lee  of  the  low  thorns,  amidst 
which  I  expected  to  find  him.  It  was,  nevertheless,  a 
bit  of  a  shock  when  I  found  we  had  walked  within 
twenty  yards  before  seeing  him.  He  was  standing 
facing  us,  up  a  sort  of  side  street,  or  narrow  opening  in 
the  scrub.  Being  almost  under  the  rhino's  nose,  I 
dropped  in  the  grass,  Elmi  behind  me.  The  latter,  as 
we  lay  still,  presently  remarked  (and  the  words  were  not 
reassuring),  "  Shoot,  he's  coming  !  "  The  expression  for 
a  moment  conveyed  the  idea  of  a  charge  ;  but  I  could 
see  for  myself  that  there  was  no  such  clanger,  as  the 
beast  clearly  had  not  seen  us,  although  so  near.  What 
Elmi  meant  was  that  the  rhino  was  moving  our  way. 

91 


92  ON   SAFARI 

Though  not  bUnd,  yet  rhino  use  their  eyesight  but 
little.  All  I  could  distinguish  among  grass  and  thorn 
was  an  amorphous  mass,  of  a  red-brown  colour  (from 
wallowing  in  red  mud),  with  a  spiky  horn  like  a  smoke- 
stack at  the  hither  end.  No  possible  shot  was  presented, 
and  the  beast  was  slowly  approaching,  feeding  on  mimosa 
boughs.  We  therefore  crept  away  through  the  grass, 
and,  gaining  the  cover  of  the  thorns,  soon  reached  the 
broadside  position.  Even  then,  though  within  less  than 
twenty  yards,  and  full  broadside  on,  I  was  reluctant  to 
fire,  for  in  the  bad  light  (the  prelude  to  a  coming 
thunderstorm)  and  the  shade  of  the  bush,  I  could  not 
quite  distinguish  the  vital  spots.  Presently  the  rhino 
raised  his  huge  head  to  pull  down  a  mimosa  branch 
(akin  to  eating  a  mouthful  of  barbed  wire),  and  the 
whole  outline  was  fully  exposed.  I  placed  a  '303  solid 
at  the  point  selected — one  foot  behind  the  ear  and  slightly 
below — while  Elmi,  by  my  direction,  put  another,  from 
the  carbine  '303,  between  eye  and  ear.  The  rhino 
merely  moved  two  steps  forward,  turned  deliberately 
round  and  stood  still,  with  his  other  broadside  exposed. 
We  repeated  our  salute  as  before,  Elmi  this  time  taking 
the  neck  shot,  while  I  tried  a  point  below  the  ear  and 
vslightly  forward  thereof.  The  effect  this  time  was 
unmistakable.  The  great  beast  dropped  straight  to 
earth,  disappearing  from  view.  For  some  seconds  I 
thought  the  deed  was  done,  and  greatly  rejoiced  thereat. 
The  joy  was  premature,  for  once  more  that  vast  red- 
brown  bulk  rose  above  the  thorns,  and  slowly,  deliberately 
walked  away. 

(3nly  a  single  cartridge  now  remained.  I  followed 
the  rhino,  walking  some  thirty  yards  behind  him, 
awaiting  a  chance.  Presently  he  left  the  bush,  and, 
with  head  carried  low  and  a  dead-sick  gait,  entered  the 
open  grass  street.  This  time  I  decided  to  try  the  heart, 
presuming  that  a  rhino  carries  such  an  appendage 
(which  I  now  doubt),  or,  at  any  rate,  the  shoulder. 
The  distance,  ere  I  had  perfected  a  thrice-refined  aim, 
was   near  eighty  yards,   and  I    heard  the  bullet  tell. 


>         J     3'      >      J       1      , 
J  J      J    ',>       3  ,  , 

>   >  5  >       3  i 


>       '     J      >      )         J3 

3      '      3  '     '      >  1  ' 
'       O    3      '3      3    3^3 


Archer,  Photo. 

TUr.KANA. 

The  wild  nomad  inhabitants  of  the  region  towards  Lake  Paidolph. 


Archer,  Photo. 


KEEIO   PJVER   EUXXING   TOWARDS    LAKE    KUDOLPH. 


i  c- 


c    t    *c    c 


TWO   EHINOS  93 

The  effect  was  remarkable.  This  hitherto  apathetic 
beast,  which  had  so  far  treated  cordite  with  shio-oish 
indifference,  suddenly  awoke  to  life  and  amazing 
activit}".  AVitli  a  succession  of  hissing  snorts — resound- 
ing like  jets  of  steam  driving  through  a  safety-valve — he 
reared  on  end,  spun  round  again  and  again,  and  finally, 
still  shrieking  and  rearing,  bolted  back  to  the  covert  he 
had  just  quitted.  He  left  a  track  like  a  runaway 
wagon,  which  we  followed  ;  but  it  was  now  dusk  and 
raining  in  torrents,  with  lightning  and  thunder  crackling 
straight  overhead.  Nothing  more  could  be  done  that 
night.     It  w^as  a  rough  job  to  regain  camp. 

At  break  of  day  I  took  up  the  spoor  with  fifteen 
boys,  following  it  for  hours  through  thin  scrub  and 
thick.  The  latter  seemed  to  me  highly  dangerous 
work,  our  radius  of  vision  being  limited  to  a  few  yards. 
On  open  ground  the  rain  had  obliterated  all  tracks,  and 
I  divided  my  force  into  three  parties,  two  circling  on 
the  flanks,  to  cut  the  spoor  ahead  when  we  lost  it 
ourselves ;  but  noon  arrived  without  our  overhauling 
the  stricken  rhino.  The  midday  heat  was  more  than  I 
could  withstand,  so  I  returned  to  camp,  directing  the 
trackers  to  hold  the  spoor  till  night.  After  sundown 
they  too  returned  empty-handed.  Not  a  sign  of  the 
beast  had  been  seen,  thoug-h  we  had  followed  on  for 
eight  or  ten  miles.  Either  I  or  the  "303  had  failed. 
After  this  double  disappointment,  first  with  elephant 
and  now  with  rhino,  I  decided  never  again  to  take  on 
these  huge  pachyderms  with  a  small  bore. 

It  was  at  this  spot — that  is,  on  the  first  plateau  of 
Laikipia — that,  a  year  before,  a  terrible  accident  had 
befallen  an  English  sportsman,  Mr.  B.  Eastwood  of 
Nairobi,  whom  I  afterwards  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting, 
and  who  kindly  allows  me  to  reproduce  his  description 
of  the  event  as  follows — 

"  On  Sunday,  the  19th  of  October,  I  was  under  way 
before  six,  and  made  straight  for  the  big  hill  (Njoro- 
Ilimalo),  nine  or  ten  miles  away,  where  1  had  seen  the 
koodoo  tracks.     I  had  gone  some  distance  up  the  valley, 


94  ON   SAFAEI 

shooting  a  steinbuck  on  the  way,  when  I  saw  two  rhinos 
a  mile  away.  The  country  was  fairly  open,  and  before 
I  got  up  they  had  disappeared  in  some  dry  scrub. 
There  was,  just  inside  this  scrub,  what  I  took  to  be  a 
low  hillock,  and  which  I  purposed  using  for  stalking. 
But  to  this  my  gun-bearer,  Sulimani,  objected  most 
strongly.  He  said  it  was  not  a  hillock,  but  rhinoceroses. 
We  crouched  behind  a  little  bush  and  waited,  but  not 
for  long.  Hardly  were  we  down  before  the  group  opened, 
and  I  saw  there  were  seven  rhinos  in  a  cluster.^  Two 
came  rushing  in  my  direction,  and  at  forty  yards  I  fired 
and  dropped  one,  finding  afterwards  that  the  bullet  had 
splintered  its  nose,  and  I  now  have  the  huge  splinter  of 
bone,  1  8  ins.  long,  with  the  horns  mounted  on  it. 

"  Leaving  Sulimani  to  skin  the  beast,  I  went,  with 
one  porter,  after  an  oryx  that  I  could  see  considerably 
more  than  a  mile  away,  but  could  not  get  anywhere 
near  it.  I  followed  it  nearly  five  miles,  passing  on  the 
way  another  rhino,  that  I  marked  in  case  I  lost  the 
oryx. 

"  On  the  way  back  I  passed  an  immense  herd  of 
eland,  fully  one  hundred,  and  then  returned  to  the  rhino. 
It  was  120  yards  away,  with  its  back  towards  me.  I  sat 
down  in  grass  eighteen  inches  high  and  waited.  After 
ten  minutes  the  rhino  turned  round  and  walked  slowly 
towards  me,  s;raziuo-.  The  man  I  had  with  me  became 
frightened,  and  after  creeping  for  some  distance  through 
the  grass,  jumped  to  his  feet  and  ran.  This  aroused  the 
beast,  for  it  lifted  its  head  and  looked  after  the  man, 
giving  me  the  chance  I  wanted.  I  put  a  solid  bullet  in 
the  centre  of  its  chest,  about  twelve  inches  up ;  it  took 
two  or  three  short  quick  steps  and  went  down  heavily, 
head-first,  its  body  slewing  round  as  it  fell.  It  made  one 
futile  effort  to  rise,  but  did  not  succeed  in  even  lifting 
its  head,  and  then  lay  motionless.  I  put  in  a  second 
shot  to  make  sure,  but  might  as  well  have  fired  at  a 
rock,  as  it  did  not  move  in  any  way.     There  seemed  to 

^  As  related  in  a  subsequent  chapter,  the  author  on  one  occasion 
came  across  a  "  hillock  "  of  six  rhinos  in  a  cluster. 


TWO   KHINOS  95 

be  not  the  slightest  breath  of  Hfe  left  in  it ;  so  I  walked 
up,  wondering  what  its  horns  measured,  and  how  I  could 
get  it  skinned  and  reach  camp  liefore  dark. 

"  All  these  conjectures  were  rudely  knocked  on  the 
head.  When  less  than  twenty  yards  away  the  huge  beast 
gave  a  roll  and  got  on  to  its  feet.  My  riHe  was  up  at 
once,  and  I  put  a  bullet  into  the  shoulder ;  but  before 
I  could  get  in  a  second  shot  the  brute  was  charging 
straight. 

"  I  commenced  to  run  at  a  ris^ht  ano:le  to  its  course, 
thinking  the  rhino  would  probably  go  on  in  a  straight 
line,  as  they  usually  do ;  but  the  first  step  I  took  I 
tripped  and  fell,  and  before  I  could  regain  my  feet  it 
was  on  top  of  me. 

"  I  was  nearly  on  my  feet  when  it  struck  me.  It  hit 
me  first  with  its  nose,  dropped  with  both  knees  on  me, 
then,  drawing  back  for  the  blow,  threw  me  clean  over 
its  back,  the  horn  entering  the  back  of  my  left  thigh, 
and  I  saw  the  animal  w^ell  underneath  me  as  I  was 
flying  through  the  air.  It  threw  me  a  second  time,  but 
I  cannot  recollect  that  throw  clearly :  and  then  came  on 
a  third  time.  I  was  lying  on  my  right  side  when  the 
great  black  snout  was  pushed  against  me.  Then  I 
found  myself  upon  my  feet — how,  1  do  not  know — and 
staggered  off.  As  I  went  an  inky  darkness  came  upon 
me.  After  going  perhaps  forty  or  fifty  yards,  expecting 
every  moment  to  be  charged  again,  I  felt  that  I  might 
as  well  lie  down  and  let  the  beast  finish  its  work  without 
further  trouble  ;  so  I  lay  down."^ 

The  spot  where  the  catastrophe  occurred  was  fifteen 
miles  from  his  camp,  and  that  camp  a  twelve-hours'  march 
beyond  Baringo.  The  nearest  doctor  was  distant  136 
miles — at  Fort  Ternan.  There,  on  the  desert  veld,  a 
shattered  wreck,  with  rioht  arm  smashed,  ribs  stove  in 
and  broken,  and  many  minor  injuries,  lay  Eastwood 
all  alone,  and  exposed  hour  after  hour  to  the  fierce 
ecjuatorial  sun  and  with  ghoulish  vultures  flapping  close 
overhead.  Not  till  late  in  the  afternoon  did  his  men 
1  Glohe  Trotter,  March  1907. 


96  ON   SAFARI 

find  him,  and  it  was  near  midnight  ere  they  could  carry 
him  into  camp.  By  indomitable  pluck  he  reached 
Baringo,  carried  in  a  litter,  on  the  second  morning ;  but 
it  was  not  till  the  eighth  day  after  the  accident  that  the 
doctor  arrived  and  the  necessary  operations  could  be 
performed.  Poor  Eastwood  lost  his  right  arm,  but 
otherwise  bears  no  trace  of  his  terrible  experience. 

Another  rhino  incident.  Mr.  Long-Innes,  whom  I 
met  close  by  Baringo,  had  just  had  this  curious  adven- 
ture. While  passing  Lake  Hannington  on  his  way  up, 
he  suddenly  saw  the  beast  lying  asleep  beneath  a  dwarf 
mimosa,  and  only  a  few  yards  from  the  track.  The 
rhino  sprang  to  its  feet  in  a  blind  charge.  The  Kikuyu 
gun-bearer  with  the  rifle  having  promptly  taken  to  his 
heels,  Innes  had  no  resource  but  to  bolt  the  other  way, 
but  pitched  his  white  Panama  hat  behind  him  as  a  blind. 
The  rhino  momentarily  halted  at  this  bait,  but,  seeing 
the  flying  Kikuyu  beyond,  transferred  attention  to  him, 
and  speedily  overtaking  him,  "  chucked  "  the  luckless 
"boy"  over  his  back,  then  continuing  his  course. 
Curiously,  the  Kikuyu  was  not  seriously  damaged.  The 
blunt  horn  of  the  rhino  had  caught  him  under  the 
chin — a  blow  thc.t  would  surely  have  broken  a  wh'te 
man's  neck,  but  in  the  savage  it  merely  produced 
"  contusions"  ! 


CHAPTER   IX 

BEYOND    BARINGO 


(in)    ORYX,    ELAND,    IMPALA,    JACKSON's    HARTEBEEST, 


DIKDIK,    ETC. 


Hitherto  we  liad  not  seen  more  than  fifteen  or 
twenty  oryx  in  the  whole  district,  but  on  the  day  after 
securing  the  second  of  my  pair  (the  limit  allowed  by  the 
game-laws)  I  fell  in  with  a  herd  of  no  less  than  fifty  of 
these  stately  antelopes.  These  presented  a  magnificent 
spectacle,  their  glancing  horns  resembling  a  forest  of 
fixed  bayonets  as  they  moved  in  from  the  north-west  in 
a  long  file,  doubtless  an  arrival  on  migration.  They 
were  accompanied  by  zebras  and  gazelles,  while  several 
jackals  hung  on  their  flanks. 

'  It  still  remained  for  my  brother  to  secure  his  pair  of 
oryx,  and  a  day  or  two  later  he  succeeded  in  that  object, 
getting  two  bulls  out  of  this  newly-arrived  herd,  the 
best  carrying  an  exceptionally  fine  head  of  34^  ins., 
besides  bringing  in  a  young  male  oryx  as  large  as  a  goat, 
which  he  and  the  men  had  captured  in  the  grass.  At 
daybreak,  when  setting  out,  he  had  also  bagged  a  big 
spotted  hyena  close  to  camp.  The  native  boys  kept 
shouting,  "  Simba,   simba "    (lion,  lion) ;    so   that   after 

making  a  good  shot,  running,  at  over  100  yards,  W 

was  disappointed  to  find  he  had  killed  only,  a  hyena. 

While  W was  busy  with  his  oryx,  I  devoted  myself 

to  impala,  wdiich  here  carry  splendid  heads ;  specimens 
of  28  ins.  are  not  uncommon,  but  one  I  met  with 
appeared  to  exceed  that  dimension.  Of  course  it  is 
always  the  biggest  that  escape,  and  that  was  the  case 

97  H 


98  ON   SAFARI 

with  my  record  impala/     Still,  the  incident  possessed 
a  moral  which  may  be  worth  relating.    I  had  "jumped" 
this  animal  in  open  forest,  and  crippled  him  so  severely 
with  a  straightaway  stern-shot  that  I  walked  up  within 
twenty  yards   of  where  he   stood  disabled,   with    head 
down  and  hind-legs   straddled    apart.     My  gun-bearer 
kept  urging,  "  Shoot,  shoot,"  but  I  thought  it  unneces- 
sary, till  the  buck  staggered  a   few   yards    into    some 
thicker  scrub,   when  I  fired  carelessly  with  the  single 
carbine  and  missed.     Even  then   the   sick  beast  stood 
gazing  towards  us  within  thirty  yards.     I  covered  his 
shoulder  with  the  double   "303,  but  that  rifle  was  on 
"  safety "  (note,  that  the   carbine  has  no   safety),   and 
before  I  could  remedy  that  bungle,  the  impala,  with  a 
loud  cough,  disappeared  over  a  ridge.     I  never  saw  him 
again,  though  I  stuck  to  his  spoor  all  that  day  and  the 
next,  and  kept  men  watching  the  vultures  till  we  left 
that  camp.     Such  is  the  vitality  of  African  antelopes. 
The  moral  is,  never  spare  a  cartridge  while  game  remains 
on  its  legs.     While  busy  puzzling  out  spoor  that  night, 
hearing  the  same  "cough,"  or  sneeze,  I  approached  the 
spot  and  got  another  impala  with  fine,  strong  head,  but 
he  appeared  a  bagatelle  by  comparison.     I  have   seen 
hundreds  of  impala,  both  in  South  and  East  Africa,  but 
never  a  head  like  the  one  my  folly  threw  away  that  day. 
We  had  now  secured  one  out  of  the  two  main  objects 
of  our  trip  to  Baringo — a  pair  of  oryx  apiece.    But  in  the 
other  we  had  been  disappointed.     Not  a  single  eland 
had  I  personally  seen,  for  certain,  in  all  the  beautiful 
park-like  plains  of  Baringo,  where,   only  a  few  weeks 
before,  these  magnificent  antelopes  had  abounded.     This 
we  knew  from  Mr.   Archer,  at  Baringo   Fort,  and  his 
assurance  was  amply  corroborated  by  old  spoor.     But 

^  From  experience,  I  deduce  this  result — that  the  apparent 
magnitude  of  a  head  seen  in  the  field  is  dispi-oportionately  affected 
by  the  span  of  horns  as  distinguished  from  their  length.  Thus,  for 
example,  of  two  impala,  each,  say,  25  ins.,  the  one  with  bi'oad  head 
of  20  ins.  span  will  appear  double  the  size  of  the  other  which  only 
spans  1 2  ins.  or  less. 


3  ) 

5  >        3      ""j      >  3         3  > 


3  3        3 

1,-)      o 


333333  3333  3 

3      3,       ,'       !,     3       ^     j'       3      3        3  3 


(!) 


ORYX,   ELA.ND,   IMPALA,   ETC.  99 

the  elands  were  no  longer  there,  nor  did  we  see  a  single 
buffalo,  while  of  giraile  only  five  or  six  laggards  re- 
mained behind.  We  saw  but  two  more  rhinos,  one  of 
which,  though  quite  unmolested,  made  a  determined 
charge  on  my  hunter,  Elmi,  who,  being  unprepared  and 
only  a  few  yards  from  the  beast,  had  a  narrow  escape. 
The  main  bodies  of  all  these  animals  had  temporarily 
retired,  probably  from  lack  of  water,  and  presumably 
northwards,  beyond  the  Tangulwee  River  (now  dry), 
into  the  sanctuary  of  the  8ugota  Reserve. 

August  26. — From  midday  till  dusk  a  storm  of 
locusts,  passing  northwards,  darkened  the  sky  and 
covered  our  camp.  Next  day,  never  a  locust  in  sight, 
but  the  huge  marabous  sat  gape-full  on  the  trees — 
actually  unable  to  close  their  beaks ! 

I  do  not  know  if  hartebeests  are  ever  common  at 
Baringo,^  but  this  family  of  antelopes  is  so  numerous  and 
so  characteristic  of  British  East- African  plains  that  their 
absence  here  was  remarkable,  the  few  we  saw  being  all 
Buhalis  jachsoni.  Members  of  another  group  were, 
however,  extremely  abundant  here,  namely,  the  dikdiks, 
or  grass-antelopes.  These  small  animals,  some  species 
of  which  are  no  bigger  than  a  hare,  lie  close  in  long  grass 
or  low  bush,  and  bound  away  from  underfoot  in  a  series 
of  leaps  that  defy  a  rifle-ball,  even  were  it  convenient  to 
fire  one.  But  on  days  when  we  went  out  expressly  with 
a  shot-gun,  not  a  dikdik  could  we  see.  One  afternoon, 
while  lying  half-asleep  under  a  mimosa,  resting  during 
the  midday  heat,  I  was  awakened  by  a  curious  whistle 
close  by,  and  cautiously  looking  up,  observed  a  small 
horned  animal  intently  watching  me,  and  secured  it  with 
No.  6  shot  from  the  Paradox,  which  luckily  lay  within 
arm's  length.  This  proved  to  be  Madoqua  gueritheri, 
a  thoroughbred  little  antelope,  though  its  tiny  annulated 
horns  only  measured  2|  ins.  in  length,  and  the  best  we 
have  since  shot  barely  exceeded  2|-  ins.  The  nose  is 
remarkably  prolonged  and  prehensile,  extending  c|uite 

1  The  Mugitani  River  practically  marks  the  Dorthern  limit  of 
Jackson's  hartebeest  in  the  Rift  Yalley. 


100  ON    SAFARI 

an  inch  beyond  the  lower  lip.  I  was  fortunate  in  secur- 
ing a  female  a  day  or  two  later.  The  male  weighed 
7  lbs.  An  even  commoner  species  than  this  (though 
I  had  not  an  opportunity  of  shooting  one)  is  of  a  slaty- 
grey  colour  with  a  white  patch  on  the  neck,  and  this 
I  cmmot  identify.  These  were  seen  in  rather  thicker 
bush,  and  were  sometimes  remarkably  tame. 

The  configuration  of  the  Baringo  Plains,  from  the 
summit  of  Laikipia  down  to  the  lake,  is  a  series  of  giant 
steps,  best  illustrated  in  the  following  rough  diagram — 

FEET 

'■,10.000 


j-yj:: 


UIAGllAM    SHOWING    CONFIGUEAPION    OF   THE    BARINGO    PLAINS. 

One  morning  when  shifting  camp  from  A  to  B,a  low 
koppie  on  the  horizon  had  been  indicated  by  our  AVando- 
robo  guide  as  the  site  of  the  next  camp.  This  land- 
mark, however,  as  we  discovered  during  the  march,  was 
not  a  koppie  at  all,  but  a  mountain-peak  of  the  Kamasea 
Range  fifty  miles  away,  beyond  the  lake.  Meanwhile  the 
misled  safari  at  one  point,  my  brother  and  self  at  two 
others,  all  separate,  had  descended  the  abrupt  escarp- 
ment beyond  B,  and  it  was  on  this  lower  level,  a  region 
of  far  denser  bush,  that  I  noticed  these  unknown  dik- 
diks  at  the  point  marked  C,  as  well  as  some  superb 
waterbuck.  Having  only  two  gun-bearers  with  me,  and 
knowing  that  we  were  already  lost  and  confronted  with 
the  risk  of  being  once  more  "benighted"  (being,  besides, 
again  overtaken  by  a  thunderstorm  and  torrential  rains), 
I  did  not  care  to  burden  ourselves  with  game.  Thus  a 
possible  chance  of  securing  a  new  species  was  lost ;  for 
before  finally  reaching  camp,  after  hours  of  anxiety,  we 
had  to  reascencl  the  escarpment,  and  never  again  visited 
the  lower  level.    Of  course  one's  impression  of  an  animal 


■>  )      O  >       »         »        ) 


J  3  1     i  >  1       > 


3    1  »  3      J    . 


O         3       ^         ,       ', 


3        O         '   3  •' 


.'  •    ^  ,\«  :« ' 


If 

JM«. 

\ 

«  — 

|v  ^ 

*'» 

Archer,  Photo.  SOUllCES   OF  THE   SUGOTA   rjVER. 

Hot  springs  whence  issues   that   strange  chalybeate  stream  that  flows  down  the 
Northern    Kift   through   biiruing-hot,  lava-strewn  country  to  within  20  miles  of 

Lake  Rudolph. 
(Note  the  Storks  and  Ibises.) 


ORYX,   ELAND,   IMPALA,   ETC.  101 

merely  seen  in  bush,  however  near,  may  be  quite  erro- 
neous ;  still,  I  cannot  identify  this  white-collared,  slate- 
blue  dikdik  with  any  of  the  descriptions  or  figures  given 
in  the  Booh  of  Antelopes}  It  is  at  least  certain  that 
tivo  species  are  found  on  these  Baringo  Plains. 

The  Wandorobo  guide  just  mentioned  was  rather 
interesting.  He  had  been  lent  to  us  by  Archer,  and 
when  he  came  to  our  camp  was  stark  naked,  possessing 
nothing  beyond  a  spear  and  a  wire  anklet.  We  gave 
him  a  blanket ;  but  he  never  entered  a  tent,  preferring 
to  coil  himself  up,  dog-like,  under  some  bush  imme- 
diately behind  our  tents.  He  kept  apart  from  the 
Swahili,  and  if  they  despised  the  wild  savage,  certainly 
the  sentiment  was  mutual.  He  made  his  own  fire, 
cooking  scraps  of  meat  and  the  bones  he  collected  from 
the  difterent  messes,  from  which  he  made  marrow-soup. 
But  he  was  distinctly  accpiisitive.  Beginning  with  an 
empty  biscuit-tin,  in  which  he  stored  rice  and  bits  of 
biltong,  he  gradually  accumulated  property.  On  our 
return  to  Baringo  he  carried  quite  a  big  roll  of  "  Ameri- 
kani "  (cotton  canvas)  containing  we  knew  not  wdiat, 
but  clearly  full  of  something.  Here,  in  Equatorial  Africa, 
one  realises  that  "  property  "  may  truly  be  synonymous 
with  robbery  I 

As  a  guide  he  proved  a  failure,  partly  owing  to  his 
dread  of  bushy  ground,  wherein  he  ever  suspected 
rhino;  but  he  displayed  a  marvellous  instinct  for  leading 
us  to  water  in  most  unlikely  spots. 

We  were  now  in  the  Suk  country,  and  occasionally 
able  to  obtain  milk,  etc.,  from  these  friendly  savages  in 

^  The  following  gives  in  tabular  form  the  approximate  distribu- 
tion of  East-African  dikdiks,  and  may  be  useful  to  sportsmen 
shooting  in  that  country — 

Species.  Locality. 

Giinther's  dikdik.  Madoqua  guentheri  .     Baringo. 
Unknown       ,,               .,                 {?)  ,, 

Cavendish's    ,,  ,,         cavendishi  .     Elmenteita,  Enderit,  etc. 

Hinde's  „  ,,         hindei  .  .     Simba,  Makindu,  etc. 

Kirk's  ,,        Xeotragus  kirki  .  .     Coast  region  only. 


102  ON   SAFARI 

exchange  for  coloured  beads  and  iron  wire.  Still,  one  is 
always  in  the  main  dependent  on  one's  own  stores,  and 
the  following  entry  in  the  diar}^  shows  the  straits  we 
had  reached  at  this  date :  "  Milk  has  given  out,  and 
coffee  also  ;  soups  did  so  weeks  ago.  There  is  only  one 
candle  left,  and  one  tin  of  biscuits — nothing  else.  We 
now  live  on  venison  and  rice,  drink  raw  tea,  and  go  to 
bed  in  the  dark." 

Early  in  September  we  left  the  hospitable  homa  of 
Baringo,  that  outlying  frontier-post  of  Empire  where  a 
single  Britisher,  by  means  of  a  wattle-and-daub  house, 
a  few  mud  huts,  seventy  native  soldiers,  and  some  coils 
of  barbed  wire,  maintains  control  and  moral  supremacy 
over  swarming  savage  tribes.  Marching  southward,  on 
the  third  evening  w^e  encamped  on  the  Molo  River, 
beneath  the  broadest-spreading  mimosa  I  ever  saw. 
The  spot,  I  believe,  is  called  Ya-Nabanda.  Here  w^e 
intended  to  halt  a  couple  of  days  to  secure  a  few  more 
specimens  of  the  large  Jackson's  hartebeest.  I  had 
succeeded  in  shooting  two  bulls,  carrying  heads  of  22 
and  20 1  ins.  respectively,  and  on  the  second   evening 

W brought  in  even  a  finer  head  of  22 j  ins.,  yet 

withal  he  was  strangely  dispirited  and  despondent. 

On  comjDaring  experiences,  it  turned  out  that  a 
curious  coincidence  had  befallen.  We  had  both  that 
day  at  last  fallen  in  with  eland,  animals  we  had  already 
abandoned  hope  of  seeing.  In  my  own  case  it  was  a 
single  eland  in  company  with  zebras  and  small  harte- 
beests.  Even  at  the  distant  view  I  saw  at  once  by  the 
square-built  stern  and  heavily-tufted  tail,  swishing  at 
the  flies  on  its  flanks,  that  this  was  a  new  animal  to  me. 
On  a  nearer  approach  I  recognised  it  as  an  eland  cow, 
carrying  long  but  poor  horns.  I  crept  within  100  yards 
of  the  group,  and  thoroughly  enjoyed  the  scene.  But  a 
cow  eland  was  not  available  game,  and  I  shot  a  w^ater- 
buck  bull  instead. 

Meanwhile,  to  the  east  of  the  river  W had  fallen 

in  with  a  herd  of  no  less  than  fifty  elands,  but  only 
including  one  big  heavy  bull.     This  splendid  beast  he 


5  3  n 

5       '       ■» 


SUE.  AVAllKIOKS   IN   THE   FORT  AT   BAKINGO. 


"■m^ 


.^f^ 


IX   THE   SUK    COUNTIIY, 

Donkey-transport  cut  off  by  river  coming  down  in  flood. 


ORYX,   ELAND,    IMPALA,   ETC.  103 

liad  wounded,  but  had  unluckily  been  unable  to  come 
up  with  it  ere  darkness  set  in.  We  therefore  decided 
to  remain  at  this  camp  till  we  had  secured  our  one  bull 
eland  apiece,  that  being  the  limit  allowed  by  law.  A 
grievous  disappointment  awaited  us  next  morning.  We 
had  both  at  this  period  been  suffering  from  the  severe 
work  entailed  by  the  constant  crawling  after  oryx, 
hartebeest,  etc.,  over  the  hard,  flinty  ground.  Cuts  and 
abrasions,  skinned  knees  and  scarified  forearms  are  the 
normal  condition  of  the  white-skinned  hunter  in  Africa, 
but  to-day  (September  8)  my  brother  was  totally  disabled 
from  walking,  one  knee  being  swollen  to  the  size  of  a 

pumpkin.     Accordingly,  I   had  to  start  alone,  W 

shouting  after  me  in  the  darkness  to  get  him  a  bull 
also,  should  a  double  chance  occur.  Nothincj  seemed  less 
probable,  since  after  tramping  more  than  two  months 
I  had  never,  up  to  then,  set  eyes  on  a  bull  eland 
at  all. 

Ere  the  sun  was  well  up  I  had  reached  some  rocky 
hills  we  called  Leopard's-Kop  (owing  to  my  having 
missed  one  of  these  animals  here  in  our  northward 
march  a  month  previously),  and  which  were  not  far 
from  where  my  brother  had  seen  the  elands  the  night 
before.  Here  we  were  watching:  a  concentration  of 
vultures,  in  the  hope  that  they  might  lead  us  to  his 
wounded  bull,  when  Elmi  espied  three  elands  afar. 
Presently  the  vultures  drifted  beyond  view,  and  we 
then  turned  attention  to  the  fresh  game.  The  elands 
were  feeding  in  open  forest  of  a  kind  of  dwarf  oak, 
which  still  carried  the  tawny  leaves  of  the  previous 
summer,  distant  two  miles,  and  dead  to  leeward.  This 
necessitated  a  long  detour — an  hour's  heavy  grind  ere 
we  gained  the  weather-gauge.  Then  some  easy  stalking 
brought  me  within  shot ;  but  so  thick  and  rank  was  the 
bush  and  grass,  and  so  fatally  did  its  sere  hues  and  the 
hanging  foliage  tone  with  the  elands'  tawny  pelts,  that 
I  failed  to  make  them  out  before  they  moved.  I  now 
saw  that  the  trio  included  one  magnificent  old  bull,  a 
massive  beast  of  blue-grey  hue.     The  exact  character  of 


104  ON   SAFAEI 

tlie  other  two  I  could  not  distinguisli.  A  second  stalk 
(in  very  mucli  more  open  country)  also  failed,  and  this 
time  the  game,  I  feared,  had  seen  something,  for  they 
went  off  at  speed,  and  we  utterly  lost  both  sight  and 
touch  of  them.  Hours  of  hard  work  and  constant  spy- 
ing elapsed  before  at  length  we  once  more  descried  our 
three  friends — again  far  away  to  leeward.  Another 
long  detour  followed ;  but  luck  this  time  favoured  us. 
In  the  first  place,  the  elands  w^ere  now  feeding  in  forest 
where  broad  grassy  opens  intervened  amidst  the  timber ; 
secondly,  after  completing  our  final  approach,  we  found 
the  three  feeding  towards  us  across  one  of  the  said 
opens.  Moreover,  in  the  long  interval  that  had  occurred 
they  had  forgotten  their  suspicions,  and  grazed  towards 
us  in  absolute  security.  First  came  a  big  old  cow  with 
very  long  horns ;  then  a  grand  bull  in  his  prime ;  lastly, 
the  glorious  old  patriarch  aforesaid  bringing  up  the  rear. 
I  was  greatly  struck  by  his  iron-grey  pelt  and  massive 
proportions,  the  heavy  pendent  dewlaps  sweeping  the 
herbage.  The  trio  passed  our  front  within  120  yards, 
but  the  shot  I  made  was  none  too  brilliant,  though  it 
could  not  have  been  more  successful.  Touchino-  the 
spine  behind  the  shoulder  (a  foot  too  far  back),  it 
dropped  the  big  bull  on  the  spot,  yet  left  sufiicient 
vitality  to  enable  him  to  recover  his  fore-legs  and  remain 
standing  so — as  a  dog  sits  on  his  haunches,  and  as  shown 
in  the  plate  opposite.  The  other  two  ran  at  the  report 
of  the  rifle ;  but  presently,  looking  back  and  seeing  their 
leader  still  apparently  on  his  legs,  they  stood  awaiting 
him  to  rejoin.  The  distance  was  not  much  over  200 
yards,  giving  me  a  good  shot  at  the  second  bull.  He 
also  was  struck  too  high,  but  fatally,  and  hardly  moved 
100  yards.  Both  these  splendid  animals,  in  fact,  stood 
disabled  close  by,  and  within  full  view. 

Sending  Elmi  to  finish  the  second  bull,  I  walked  up 
to  the  first,  which,  unable  to  move,  watched  my  advance 
with  mild,  reproachful  e3'es,  tempering  the  savage  joy 
of  success.  He  was  a  veritable  patriarch,  his  front 
adorned  with  a  mat  of  dark  curly  hair,  shading  ofi"  into 


'i  J      J    '    J       5  >  3 


5  ■'^     3     3        3  3 


"         '  '      '   3       3  3    '       3      '  S 

3        3        >  3  '        >  >      '  3       3      "3       ■> 

'3'33333'333        3' 


ORYX,   ELAND,   IMPALA,   ETC.  105 

chestnut  laterally,  and  set  off  by  a  white  patch  at  either 
tear-duct.  Though  almost  bare  of  hair,  the  huge  blue- 
grey  body  still  showed  the  yellow  vertical  stripes, 
though  indistinctly.  The  horns  were  worn  down  with 
age,  and  compared  badly  with  those  of  the  younger 
bull,  which  taped  26  ins.  straight.  The  latter  animal 
was  of  a  bright  fawn-colour,  with  yellow  stripes.  He 
lacked  the  matted  forehead  and  pendent  dewlap,  but 
carried  a  heavy  tuft  of  hair  below  the  neck,  which  had 
been  almost  worn  off  in  the  older  bull. 

Estimated  weights  in  the  field  are  necessarily  un- 
certain, but  this  younger  bull  eland  appeared  to  my 
eye  about  ec[ual  in  bulk  and  weight  to  a  big  Norwegian 
bull-elk.  The  latter  animal  I  have  actually  ascertained 
to  scale  1,260  lbs.  clean.  Should  this  comparison  be 
correct,  the  patriarch,  with  his  vastly  bulkier  frame,  and 
carrying  far  more  fat,  may  have  represented  hard  by  a 
ton  dead- weight  as  he  lay. 

The  stalkinoj  both  of  eland  and  Jackson's  hartebeest 
had  been  true  stalking,  by  which  I  mean  that  the  game 
had  not  seen  or  suspected  the  presence  of  a  hunter  till 
receiving  the  bullet.  The  approach  to  oryx,  Coke's 
and  Neumann's  hartebeest,  wildebeest.  Grant's  gazelle, 
zebra  and  other  denizens  of  perfectly  open  plains  is 
hardly  stalking  in  the  strict  sense.  It  is  rather  out- 
ma  noeuvrino- •  but  our  ton  one  is  defective  in  distinctive 
terms  in  venery.  Bush-stalking,  as  already  mentioned, 
is  yet  another  art. 

After  off- skin nino-  the  two  eland  bulls  we  were  four 
hours'  march  from  camp,  and,  curiously,  on  our  way 
thither  I  saw  four  more  elands.  Ten  days  later  I  found 
these  antelopes  in  some  numbers  near  Lake  Elmenteita, 
where  there  had  been  none  two  months  before.  Clearly 
at  this  date  (September)  elands  were  moving  into  both 
these  districts.  I  should  add  that  all  I  saw  were  com- 
paratively young  animals  ;  never  again,  that  year,  did  I 
see  one  of  those  heavy  old  patriarchs  such  as  that  whose 
head  now  adorns  my  walls. 

Besides  the  game  mentioned,  we  also  met  with  the 


106 


OX   SAFARI 


following  from  this  camp  on  the  Molo  River : — Waterbuck, 
duiker  and  steinbuck,  a  few  of  each  ;  ostriches  numerous, 
as  were  also  the  big  "paau"  or  kori  bustard,  while  the 
thorn -jungle  to  the   west  of  the  river  held  bush-pig. 


EAST-AFRICAN   BUSH-PIGS. 


Following  are  dimensions  of  a  big  bush-pig  boar  : 
Length,  snout  to  tip  of  tail,  5  ft.  4  ins.,  of  which  the 
tail  measured  13  ins.  ;  height  at  shoulder,  30  ins.  ;  weight 
as  killed,  270  lbs.  The  East-African  bush-pig  can  be 
distinguished  from  wart-hog  half-a-mile  away  by  their 
white  "  mane "  of  heavy  pendent   hair.     Twice  I  saw 


OEYX,    ELAND,   IMPALA,   ETC.  107 

a  hunting-dog,  a  single  beast  on  eacli  occasion.  Grant's 
gazelle  plentiful,  but  of  Thomson's  we  met  with  only 
two  or  three.  This  is  the  limit  of  their  northward 
range,  which  is  practically  bounded  by  the  equator. 
None  exist  beyond  Baringo.^ 

At  this  point  we  fell  in  with  two  natives,  Wandorobo, 
hunting  by  means  of  a  donkey.  They  had  fitted  the 
animal  with  a  pair  of  wooden  horns,  and  by  crouching 
behind,  guiding  him  with  a  cord  to  his  nose,  approached 
near  enough,  we  were  told,  to  kill  hartebeests  and  even 
such  large  game  as  elands  with  their  poisoned  arrows. 
Their  bows  were  primitive,  and  appeared  very  feeble. 
They  used  them  horizontally,  held  along  the  line  of  the 
donkey's  back. 

A  curious  incident  befell  while  shooting  from  this 
camp.  I  was  stalking  a  little  group  of  four  Jackson's 
hartebeests.  Previous  to  starting  on  the  stalk  my 
brother  and  I  had  noticed  a  single  zebra  standing  fast 
asleep  on  a  grassy  decline  beyond.  My  first  shot  broke 
the  shoulder  of  the  best  bull,  but  before  getting  quite 
beyond  range  the  other  three  pulled  up  to  gaze,  a  good 
bull  mounting  an  ant-heap.  I  tried  the  second  barrel  at 
him,  distance  some  300  to  350  yards,  and  distinctly 
heard  the  bullet  tell.  What  was  my  surprise  to  see,  on 
jumping  to  my  feet,  that  that  bullet  had  struck,  not  the 
hartebeest  aimed  at,  but  the  unfortunate  zebra  100 
yards  beyond,  whose  very  existence  I  had  forgotten, 
and  which  was  actually  out  of  my  sight  at  the  moment 
of  firing.  He  must  have  been  trotting  away  down  the 
slope  when  the  errant  ball  struck  just  by  the  root  of  his 
tail.  The  zebra  was  still  struggling  i7i  extremis  as  we 
rushed  by  in  pursuit  of  the  lamed  hartel^eest,  but  it  was 
hours  before  we  recovered  the  latter,  and  on  our  return 
the  zebra  was  dead.  Our  men,  in  consequence,  refused 
to  eat  the  meat,  not  having  been  bled,  which  would 

^  The  correctness  of  this  was  subsequently  confirmed  by  our 
experience  on  Lake  Solai,  further  east  and  on  the  same  line  of 
latitude.  We  saw  but  one  Thomson's  gazelle  during  our  sojourn  on 
Solai,  though  they  are  plentiful  a  dozen  miles  southward. 


108  ON   SAFAEI 

thus  have  been  wasted  but  for  the  hyenas,  jackals, 
vultures  and  marabous.  Forty-eight  hours  afterwards 
I  repassed  the  spot,  and  not  a  trace,  not  even  a  bone, 
remained,  only  a  circle  of  down-trodden  grass  and  a  few 
huge  feathers.  This  zebra  was  an  aged  stallion,  almost 
toothless,  and  much  clawed  by  lions — a  fine  specimen ; 
but  I  was  annoyed  at  killing  him  here,  as  I  meant 
securing  my  two  specimens  close  alongside  the  railway, 
whereas  I  was  now  compelled  to  carry  the  heavy  skin 
and  head  some  fifty  miles. 

Septemher  9. — Our  young  oryx  died,  despite  all  we 
could  do.  Fresh  milk  was  what  it  wanted,  and  this  the 
Masai  refused  to  sell.  Yet  they  came  daily  into  our  camp 
for  medicines,  the  chief  wanting  his  child's  chest  and  his 
wife's  leg  cured,  and  so  on.  We  explained,  with  some 
little  force,  the  principles  of  reciprocity,  and  they  then 
sent  in  milk — when  too  late.  However,  we  gave  them 
Bowe's  liniment,  Alcock's  plasters,  fruit-salt,  etc.,  and 
W doctored  them  all  round.     Results  unknown. 

The  last  march  from  the  Molo  Eiver  to  the  railway 
at  Nakuru  is  twenty-three  miles  across  waterless  veld. 
This  long  grind  we  avoided  by  carrying  water  from  the 
little  Rangai  Eiver,  which  enabled  us  to  camp  for  the 
night  midway.  By  placing  leafy  boughs  in  each  bucket 
of  water  the  Swahili  porters  managed  to  carry  them  a 
dozen  miles  without  spilling  a  drop,  and  this  in  addition 
to  their  regular  burdens. 

The  following  day  we  marched  into  Nakuru,  through 
a  region  of  very  coarse,  sour  grass,  where  we  saw  little 
or  no  game.  We  had  been  away  thirty-four  days  on 
this  Baringo  trip,  and  had  secured  forty- four  selected 
heads  of  large  game,  including  twelve  diff*erent  species, 
besides  ostrich  and  kori  bustard.  Even  these  figures, 
imposing  as  they  seem,  do  not  fully  represent  the  faunal 
wealth  of  the  country,  for  (as  related)  some  others  defied 
our  efibrts.  There  were,  moreover,  several  species  of 
which  I  had  previously  shot  specimens  in  South  Africa  — 
such  as  bushbuck,  duiker,  steinbuck,  etc.,  and  which  I 
did    not   asjain    molest.     And    a    short    month's    time 


J  3      1,^535 

3         3      3    ',>       3  3  3 

3  1         •  3       3  3  3 


J  3  33333333 


3'j  33033      3 


3      3  3 

3^3 '33  33 
3  3'  ,  '  3  3  ,3 
3         3'  3      33^3 


ORYX,    ELAND,   IMPALA,   ETC. 


109 


forbids  that  all  the  magnificent  array  of  wild-life  one 
sees  here  should  each  receive  its  proper  share  of 
attention. 

At  Nakiiru  we  received   a  sack  of  mails — the  first 
home-news  for  eighty  days. 


PUEPLE-CROWXED  coucAL  (Centropus  momichus) 
A  reclusive  bird,  oftener  heard  than  seen. 


CHAPTER  X 

ON   SAFARI 
A   SKETCH    OF    CAMP-LIFE    IX    BRITISH    EAST   AFRICA 

The  amenities  of  camp-life  vary  with  the  latitude. 
Africa,  the  home  of  tent-dwellers,  aftbrds  the  ideal ; 
Northern  lands,  too  often,  the  reverse.  Compare  the 
rigom's  of  life  under  canvas  in  subarctic  regions — 
•especially  at  high  altitudes,  as  on  the  reindeer  fjelds  of 
Norway,  or  even  in  the  low-lying  forests  of  Sweden  or 
Newfoundland.  There  each  hunter  is  accompanied  by 
but  a  single  Achates,  whose  functions  combine  both  those 
of  gun-bearer  by  day,  of  cook  and  attendant  by  night. 
As  darkness  falls,  one  returns  to  an  empty  camp ;  fires 
must  be  lit — thouQ-h  rain  descends  in  sheets — and  dinner 
cooked  ere  the  day's  work  is  complete.  Comfort,  or  the 
semblance  thereof,  is  rarely  expected,  still  more  rarely 
found.  "  I  doubled  the  Horn  before  the  mast,"  writes 
my  brother,  "  and  that  was  no  bed  of  roses  in  the  old 
days  of  wind-jammers ;  but  it  was  no  whit  more 
unendurable  than  a  fortnight's  real  bad  weather  under 
canvas  on  the  high  fjeld." 

In  Africa,  on  the  other  hand,  tent-life  is  a  normal 
condition,  and  the  system  and  custom  of  camping  in 
the  open  have  been  brought  to  the  level  of  an  art. 
Discomfort  and  trouble  are,  or  ought  to  be,  unknown. 

Before  one's  arrival  in  Africa  the  whole  safari  has 
already  been  collected,  trained  men  organised  to  take 
the  field — these  being  mostly  Swahilis.  That  word 
"  safari,"'  by  the  way,  is  quite  untranslatable.  It  has 
no  British  equivalent,  though  in  daily  use  on  British 
territory,  the  usual  rendering  of  "  caravan  "  being  equally 

110 


J      >,      5      J      3  3 

1      >'       >      3        ■,       , 


c    c  c  c  t   c 


IN   BPJTISH   EAST   AFRICA  111 

inaccurate  and  inadequate.  A  safari  comprises  a 
mobilised  expedition  organised  and  equipped  to  take  the 
field  and  to  travel  in  any  direction,  whether  for  purposes 
of  sport,  trading  or  otherwise.  Its  component  parts 
include  : — (1)  the  native  porters,  who  carry  the  tents, 
camp-  and  cooking-gear,  stores,  commissariat,  and,  in 
short,  the  whole  outfit ;  hut  whose  main  burden,  after 
all,  is  the  rice  for  their  own  consumption.  These  men 
carry  60  lbs.  apiece  on  their  heads,  and  their  numbers 
necessarily  depend  upon  the  extent  and  duration  of  the 
expedition.  Thirty  or  forty  porters  suflice  for  such 
purposes  as  ours.  Next  come  (2)  the  askaris,  or  native 
police,  each  armed  with  a  Snider  rifle  for  protection  of 
the  camp  by  night  and  day.  Their  duties  involve  the 
night-watch,  maintaining  fires,  etc.,  but  no  burden-bear- 
ing. Thirdly,  come  the  cook  and  cook's  mates,  a  "  tent- 
boy,"  or  personal  servant  for  each  sportsman — these 
being  usually  "  mission-boys  "  who  have  acquired  some 
slight  smattering  of  English — and  syces  for  ponies,  if 
ponies  are  used.  Lastly,  though  of  first  importance, 
comes  the  Neapara,  or  headman,  who  directs  the  whole 
crowd,  and  upon  whose  capacity  to  lead  depends  largely 
the  comfort,  if  not  the  success,  of  the  expedition. 

There  remain  to  be  enumerated  the  hunters,  each 
with  his  attendant  gun-bearers.  Somalis  are  usually 
employed,  and,  if  of  the  right  sort,  are  by  far  the  best 
shikaris;  but  the  "hunter"  question  is  big,  and  can 
only  be  mentioned  here  incidentally. 

Enough,  however,  of  such  detail.  The  purpose  of 
this  chapter  is  to  sketch  in  outline  the  hunter's  daily 
life  when  encamped  on  the  open  veld.  Assuming  that 
he  has  reached  his  hunting-ground,  the  point  I  would 
place  first,  as  the  most  essential  to  enjoyment,  if  not 
also  to  success,  is  this — Breakfast  by  candlelight,  and 
be  a  mile  away  from  camp  when  day  breaks.  In  Africa 
there  is  no  hardship  in  this.  AVhen  lights  are  out  by 
nine  o'clock,  not  even  a  sluggard  can  complain,  after 
eight  hours  in  the  blankets,  of  turning  out  at  five ! 


112 


ON   SAFARI 


A  cup  of  black  coffee  in  bed  at  the  hour  named, 
with  breakfast  twenty  minutes  later,  enables  this 
essential  to  be  fulfilled. 

The  whole  joy  and  glory  of  the  tropical  day  are 
confined  to  its  earlier  hours.  That  is  the  time  when 
the  world  of  the  wilderness  is  amove,  when  its  beauties 
and  infinite  variety  of  forms  can  be  seen  and  appreci- 
ated to  the  best  advantage.  Later,  when  the  whole 
landscape  is  drenched  in  a  brazen  sun-glare  that  bites 
like  the  breath  of  a  furnace,  but  little,  by  comparison, 
will  be  seen,  and  exertion  becomes  well-nigh  impossible. 


WHITE-BROWED  coucAL,  OR  BUSH-CUCKOO  {Centropus  supcrcUiosus). 
Crown  of  head  and  tail  dark  ;  upper  parts  chestnut. 

From  the  darkness  without,  as  one  sips  that  early 
coffee,  there  resound  the  bubbling  notes  of  bush-cuckoo 
and  nightjar ;  the  last  wail  of  the  laughing  hyena, 
possibly  the  roar  of  a  distant  lion,  precede  the  dawn. 
Following  these,  but  ere  yet  a  sign  of  light  is  apparent, 
a  chorus  of  infinite  doves  awakes  the  day — "  Chuck-her- 
up,  chuck-her-up,"  in  endless  iteration.  "  Chock-taw, 
chock-taw,"  responds  another  species.  Then  the 
whistling  call-notes  of  francolins  and  the  harsher  cackle 
of  guinea-fowl  resound  from  the  bush  on  every  side. 

Already  one  is  out  and  away,  brushing  through  dew- 
laden  grass  that  soaks  to  the  waist.     What  matter  that. 


IN   BRITISH  EAST   AFEICA 


113 


when  ill  a  few  more  minutes  tlie  sun  will  have  drunk 
up  every  drop  of  moisture  ?  This  hour — that  of  breaking- 
day — and  those  which  succeed  it,  say  till  10  a.m.,  are 
those  which  we  Northerners,  we  of  the  thin  white  skin, 
can  enjoy  to  the  full.  Cool,  delicious  breezes  recall  a 
summer's  day  at  home ;  but  here  one  may  see  a  hundred 

There  so  the  creatures 


sights  one  cannot  see  at  home 
of    nio-ht,    retreatino- 


before    the 


commo' 


day— perky 


AARD-WOLF. 


jackals  trotting  along  in  pairs,  or  a  grim  hyena  slouch- 
ing off  to  his  lair.  This  is  the  hour  when  (if  ever)  you 
may  encounter  some  of  the  "unseen  world" — the 
otocyon  and  aard-wolf,  the  ratel  and  mongoose,  great 
and  small.  Beyond,  on  the  open  veld,  are  antelopes 
and  gazelles,  zebras,  and  perhaps  giraffes,  scattered, 
feeding,  far  and  wide.  Later  on,  in  the  hot  hours,  these 
assemble  into  troops,  resting  during  the  noontide  heat, 
and  less  conspicuous. 

True,  during  those  hot  hours,  the  game,  even  the 
sentries,  may  be  less  intensely  vigilant — more  easy  of 


114  ON   SAFARI 

access.  I  cannot  of  my  own  experience  assert  that 
such  is  the  case.  Indeed,  I  have  never  been  able  to 
recognise  that  mere  heat,  however  great,  had  any 
appreciable  effect  on  these  creatures  of  the  torrid 
zone,  or  caused  the  least  relaxation  of  their  w^ondrous 
watchfulness. 

However  that  may  be,  at  least  to  the  hunter,  the 
difference  between  the  two  periods  is  enormous.  The 
cool  breeze  that  rejoiced  the  dawn  has  given  place  to 
the  fiery  furnace  of  a  vertical  sun.  The  very  earth  feels 
molten ;  dust  chokes  the  prostrate  stalker  and  per- 
spiration blinds.  The  reflected  heat  from  below  and 
direct  rays  from  above  combine  to  render  sunstroke 
(followed  by  fever)  quite  a  possible  item  among  the 
day's  results. 

No,  be  astir  wdth  the  dawn,  spend  the  matutinal 
hours  abroad,  but  return  by  eleven  to  rest  in  your  tent  or 
beneath  those  shade-giving  mimosas  that  Nature  has 
provided  for  the  purpose.  Thus  is  conserved  the  North- 
born  vigour ;  climatic  risks  are  avoided ;  and  then,  to- 
wards four  o'clock,  when  rays  decline  from  the  perpen- 
dicular, you  can  put  in  two  or  three  hours'  good  w^ork 
in  comparative  comfort. 

Darkness  has  settled  down.  A  mile  or  so  ahead  3'ou 
catch  the  glint  of  the  camp-fires.  Not  as  in  Norway 
will  Lars  and  Ivar  now  have  to  create  a  blaze  from  scant 
material,  and  that  often  wet.  Here  all  is  ready  to  hand. 
Your  tent-boys,' Enoch  and  Shadrack  by  name,  awatch 
your  coming  afar,  ready  with  a  "long  drink"  prepared. 
It  is  only  "  sparklets  and  lime-juice,"  but  delicious  to 
parched  throat.  Enoch  removes  your  boots  and 
generally  acts  valet,  while  his  mate  has  a  bath  and  dry 
clothes  all  ready.  Another  "boy"  stands  by  with 
sponge  and  towel.  Luxuries,  indeed,  in  the  wilderness 
that  one  expects  not,  nor  desires,  at  home  !  Half-an- 
hour's  rest  and  a  pipe,  the  day's  experiences  compared, 
diaries  entered  up,  and  then  dinner  is  announced. 
Beneath  a  spreading  acacia  stands  the  table,  smart  in 


IN   BKITISH  EAST   AFRICA  115 

clean  white  napery  and  briglitly-biirning  lamps.  Marrow- 
soup,  followed  by  cutlets  of  gazelle  and  a  spatchcocked 
guinea-fowl,  then  curried  venison  and  a  marvellous 
pudding  (cornflour  from  Glasgow,  peaches  from 
Australia  or  pine-apple  from  Natal)  form  a  sample 
menu — the  whole  w^ashed  down  with  tea,  while  a  final 
"  tot  "  completes  the  feast. 

The  best  potatoes  on  earth  grow  in  British  East 
Africa ;  but  these,  and  flour  also,  are  bulky  cargo,  so 
that,  after  a  week  or  two,  bread  and  the  tuber  are 
replaced  by  camp  biscuits. 

Commotion  in  the  camp  presently  announces  the 
arrival  of  the  porters  carrying  in  the  spoils  of  the  day. 
Silently,  one  by  one,  these  emerge  from  outer  darkness, 
and  advancing  across  the  ring  of  firelight,  each  deposits 
his  burden  of  meat.  This  is  placed  in  charge  of  the 
headman,  w^hile  heads  and  horns  are  brought  up  to  us, 
to  add  to  the  ever-increasino^  Golo-otha  behind  our  tents. 
At  once  begins  the  work  of  preparing  specimens,  off^- 
skinning,  pegging-out  hides,  rubbing-in  wood-ash,  etc. 
The  responsibility  for  this  rests  with  the  Somali  hunters, 
aided  by  any  Swahili  recruits  they  may  have  enlisted 
and  tausfht  this  work.^  Meanwhile,  the  rest  of  the 
crowd  are  busy  cooking.  Frying-pans  and  gridirons 
are  balanced  on  three  stones  at  every  fire,  the  fizzling 
of  broiling  meat  sounds  through  the  camp,  and  soon  all 
are  oorsfino-  on  unwonted  abundance. 

&        O        o  , 

In  this  superb  climate  appetites,  even  white  appe- 
tites scarcely  recognisable  at  home,  rapidly  rival  those 
of  hyenas.  The  Swahili,  it  would  appear,  remain 
constitutionally  at  about  that  standard. 

Another  constitutional  feature  noticed  in  the  Swahili, 

1  Many  Swahilis  display  considerable  aptitude  in  this  work,  and 
become  quite  reliable  even  in  the  more  delicate  operations,  such  as 
cleaning  the  lips  and  eye-sockets,  the  claws  of  felidx,  etc.  They 
are  keen  to  be  so  employed,  as  not  only  does  the  accomplish- 
ment give  them  a  preference,  but  it  also  means  receiving  two 
or  three  rupees  a  month  over  and  above  their  regular  wage  as 
porters. 


116 


ON   SAFARI 


in  common  with  indigenous  native  tribes,  was  their 
power  of  subsisting,  as  vultures  do,  on  putrid  flesh  that 
would  certainly  poison  a  white  man.  For  days  after  the 
carcases  of  elephants  or  rhinos  had  passed  into  that  stage 
when  it  was  impossible  to  approach  within  100  yards 
to  leeward,  these  savages  continued  to  feast  thereon, 
and  one  morning  we  witnessed  the  ridiculous  scene 
here  depicted.     As  day  broke  our  "  boys  "  descried  some 


SAVAGES   LOOTING    "HIGH        RHINO. 


natives  (presumably  Wandorobo)  feloniously  helping 
themselves  to  a  "  high  "  rhino  which  they  had  regarded 
as  their  peculiar  property.  Chase  was  instantly  given, 
and  the  trespassers,  on  seeing  themselves  detected,  each 
collared  a  stinking  rib  or  other  loose  titbit,  and  fled. 
Most  laughable  was  the  pursuit ;  but  the  agile  naked 
natives,  bounding  away  like  wild  animals,  made  good 
their  escape  in  the  bush. 

It  may  be  worth  mention  that  antelope  venison  is 
excellent,    though   varying    in   quality.      Waterbuck  is 


IX   BEITISH   EAST   AFEICA  117 

certainly  the  worst,  distinctly  coarse  and  ill-flavoured. 
This  and  zebra,  however,  are  fully  appreciated  by  the 
safari,  so  need  not  be  wasted.  My  brother,  who 
tells  me  he  knows,  gives  the  pride  of  place  to  the 
klipspringer  ;  while  I  have  grateful  recollection  of  the 
tiny  dikdiks  (Cavendish's  and  Giinther's),  their  flesh 
being  white  and  of  exquisite  flavour.  Eland  will 
compare  with  the  best  of  British  beef — perhaps  a  trifle 
too  fat — and  may  some  day  possibly  be  utilised  as 
such.  Oryx  also  stands  in  quite  the  front  rank,  and  so 
do  impala  and  all  the  gazelles.  Hartebeest  is  hard  and 
rather  coarse,  excepting  the  cut  alongside  the  back- 
bone. Guinea-fowl,  francolin  and  bush-bustard  form 
invaluable  adjuncts  to  the  larder. 

A  simple,  careless  soul  is  the  average  Swahili,  strong 
as  a  bull,  willing,  easily  led  and  easily  amused.  He  has, 
besides,  a  distinctly  musical  turn,  and  it  surprises,  after 
his  feast,  to  hear  the  quality  of  melody  he  manages  to 
extract  from  the  rudest  of  instruments.  A  siuo'le- 
headed  drum  does  duty  as  bass,  Avhile  a  wooden 
"chatty"  containing  peas  or  pebbles  supplies  rhythm 
and  beat.  We  had  two  strino-  afl"airs,  somethino-  between 
a  guitar  and  a  banjo,  the  sound-cases  being  formed  of 
the  gourd-like  shell  of  some  tree-fruit,  with  a  strip  of 
wood  fixed  lengtliAvise  across  the  cavity  and  furnished 
with  one  or  two  strings.  "With  these  primitive  tools," 
my  brother  writes,  "  our  '  boys  '  succeeded  in  producing 
music  which  undoubtedly  possessed  not  only  form,  but 
individuality  and  character.  What  struck  me  most  was 
the  absence  of  any  element  of  brightness  or  joy.  All 
was  cast  in  minor  key.  Possibly  the  imperfect  scale 
and  inability  to  modulate  may  contribute  to  this  effect ; 
but  the  resultant  reiteration  of  melancholy  phrase  is  apt 
to  grow  wearisome.  The  folk-songs  of  Northern  races 
are,  for  the  most  part,  in  this  minor  mode ;  but  that  is 
consonant  with  environment  and  character.  Why  these 
light-hearted  children  of  the  sun  should  also  express  in 
song  so  much  of  sadness  is  not  apparent.      Possibly 


118  ON   SAFARI 

uncounted  ages  of  slavery  and  savagery  have  left  the 
impress  deep  in  their  breasts." 

These  simple  harmonies,  not  without  their  charm, 
grow  upon  one  as  evening  after  evening  they  soothe 
the  stillness  of  the  tropical  night.  Droned  out  with 
intervals  strange  to  European  ear,  those  savage  ditties 
have  oft  recalled  the  couplets  and  malaguenas  we  are 
long  accustomed  to  hear  sung  by  our  camp-fires  in  far- 
away Spain.  Far  awaj^  yet  there  may  be  a  common 
source.  The  cross-bred  Swahili,  half- Arab,  half- African, 
springs  in  part  from  a  race  that  has  left  many  another 
mark  on  the  Spain  of  to-day. 

The  Swahili  language  also  rings  gracefully  and 
euphoniously,  while  many  of  their  names  for  places, 
animals,  birds,  etc.,  are  certainly  prettier  than  those  we 
use — often  borrowed  from  uncouth  Dutch  !  Place- 
names  throughout  East  Africa  (though  these  are  not 
Swahili)  also  deserve  note,  such  as  Elmenteita,  Nakiiru, 
Naivasha,  Laikipia,  Kamasea.  Can  any  language  claim 
more  euphonious  form  ? 

Sooner  or  later,  the  whole  country  within  reach  of 
any  one  camp  has  been  traversed  in  every  direction, 
explored  and  hunted.  Desired  specimens  have  either 
been  secured  or  proved  to  be  impracticable  at  this  point. 
It  has  become  necessary  to  try  fresh  fields,  and  the  order 
issues  : — "  Strike  camp  at  dawn."  That  next  morning 
you  may  take  "  an  easy,"  since  much  work  has  to  be 
done  before  the  start,  and  it  is  an  absolute  rule  never  to 
attempt  hunting  while  on  the  march. 

On  turning  out  towards  sun-up  (thus  seeing  the 
camp  by  day-dawn  for  the  first  time),  already  the  canvas 
city  of  yesterday  has  disappeared.  The  circle  of  tents 
surroundinof  a  central  mountain  of  stores  has  vanished. 
Not  one,  save  your  own,  remains  standing,  and  every- 
where black  men  are  bustling  about,  each  knowing  his 
duty  and  doing  it — packing,  strapping,  mobilising. 
Hardly  had  you  quitted  the  blankets  than  your  l)ed  is 
seized,    dismantled,    folded    and   stowed    in    its   valise. 


5         )  3     J  > 

j'      >  J       3      3 

J    '   >  3         J  3 

J      ']  )  3         3 


3  3  3  3  3 

>        3  3  3 

3       3  3  ' 

3     3  3  3    3  a 


>'=     r?     ?' 


3       3  3 


•3'      >         33 


3  3  3 

3  3         3  3 

,3  3       3       . 

3  3     3      '     1 


SOMALI    HUNTERS   IN    MIDDAY   UNDllESS. 

(Eluii  Hassan  ou  right.) 


SAFAPJ   AWAITING   THE   ORDER   TO   .START — NAIROBI. 


IN   BRITISH   EAST   AFRICA  119 

While  you  perform  a  five-minutes'  ablution  outside  the 
door,  the  tent  behind  you  has  come  down  as  by  magic  ; 
and  even  the  canvas  wash-basin  will  be  whipped  away 
from  beneath  your  yet  dripping  person.  Breakfast  is 
set  out  beneath  yon  shady  tree,  and  ere  a  hasty  meal  is 
finished,  the  whole  camp-outfit  is  ready  to  move,  packs 
completed,  burdens  assorted  and  assigned,  each  man 
knowing  his  own.  The  whole  operation  has  been  per- 
formed with  a  degree  of  smartness,  method  and  silent 
efficiency  that  surprises.  Men  such  as  these  represent 
valuable  material. 

Similar  scenes  will  be  observed  on  arrival  at  the  next 
camping-point.  Without  a  word  said,  one's  own  tent  will 
have  been  erected  complete — ground-sheets  laid,  bed  set 
up,  table  and  chairs  arrayed  in  a  grove  hard  by — all 
within  a  few  short  minutes.  The  brushwood  over  half- 
an-acre  has  been  cleared  away  with  "  matchets." 
Meanwhile,  the  cook  and  his  mates  have  their  fires 
alight,  and  dinner  preparing ;  while  already  one  sees 
a  fatigue-party  returning  with  burdens  of  wood  and 
water. 

One  morning,  however,  occurs  a  hitch.  The  head- 
man desires  to  see  the  "  Bwana  Khubwa  "  (Great  Master). 
Silently — since  we  speak  not  his  tongue — he  tallies  off', 
with  taps  of  his  M'piqui  staff,  thirty-four  burdens,  all 
laid  out  in  one  straight  row.  Then  he  indicates  that  there 
are  but  twenty-six  porters.  A  problem  to  wrestle  with. 
Threes  into  two  won't  go,  and  never  would  ;  and  rule-of- 
three  helps  no  more.  There  are  two  plans  : — (1)  To 
repack  the  thirty-four  burdens  into  twenty-six.  This 
proposal  is  received  in  speechful  silence.  (2)  To  leave 
the  surplus  stores  here  in  charge  of  a  porter  or  two,  with 
a  couple  of  askaris,  till  we  can  send  back  relay-gangs  from 
the  next  camp  to  fetch  them. 

Long  ere  the  knotty  point  is  solved  our  chaii^s  and 
breakfast-table  have  melted  into  packs,  and  all  its  para- 
phernalia vanished  wdthin  the  spacious  "cook-box." 
"  Hurry  up,"  resounds  through  the  camp.  "  All  ready," 
shouts  the  swarthy  Neapara  (the  only  English  words  he 


120 


ON   SAFARI  . 


knows).  "March  !  "  we  reply  ;  and,  at  the  order,  each 
man  hoists  his  allotted  burden.  An  askari  takes  the 
lead,  and,  following  him,  the  whole  crowd  fall  in,  form 
line,  and  file  ofi'  with  serpentine  exactitude  towards  our 
next  destination  ;  while  hordes  of  expectant  vultures 
sweep  down  to  gorge  on  the  debris  of  a  deserted 
camp. 


HEAD  OF  avhite-];eai;ded  gnu. 


'  1  ),      5  >      ■» 

■>  J  .'      5  ,        , 

>  3  J    \J  1 

1  )  >         J  > 


'   N      ?      3  '     '      » 

'  3     >  '       •>     1 


a 
p 

IZi 

p 

2i 


« 


o 
3 

a 
z 

o 


CHAPTER   XI 

ELMENTEITA 
(l)    IN    SEPTEMBER 

In  mid- September  1904  I  alighted  at  Elmenteita,  a 
station  in  tlie  Rift  Valley  adjoining  and  overlooking  the 
basin  of  the  Enderit  River  and  our  lovely  hunting-grounds 
of  six  weeks  earlier,  already  described  in  Chap.  III. 
These  latter,  in  fact,  lay  within  a  few  hours'  march  to 
the  southward;  but  my  object  in  returning  was  to  try 
the  country  to  the  north  of  the  railway — see  sketch- 
map  at  p.  14. 

The  special  object  was  to  obtain  specimens  of 
Neumann's  hartebeest  (Buhalis  neumamii),  males.  As 
already  mentioned,  we  had  each  secured  a  female  of  this 
species;  but  owing  either  to  the  extreme  wariness  of 
this  antelope  or,  perhaps  in  greater  degree,  to  defici- 
encies in  hunting- craft,  a  pair  of  bulls  were  still  lacking, 
and  these  I  was  determined  to  obtain  at  Elmenteita. 
At  the  moment,  time  was  an  essential  element  in  the 
enterprise,  since  homeward-bound  steamers  in  those 
days  were  few  and  often  far  between,  and  I  had  only 
left  myself  some  eight  shooting-days  to  attain  both  this 
object  at  Elmenteita,  and,  if  possible,  a  second.  The 
latter,  it  may  be  added,  was  to  obtain  on  the  Athi 
Plains,  100  miles  to  the  eastward,  examples  of  Coke's 
hartebeest  and  the  white-bearded  gnu ;  but  such  a 
programme  seemed  altogether  too  ambitious  within  those 
narrow  limits  of  time. 

It  was  3  a.m.  when  the  coast-bound  train,  carrying 
away  my  brother,  left  me  standing  alone,  in  pj^jamas, 
on    the    rubble    stones   that    serve    for   a   platform    at 

121 


122  ON   SAFARI 

Elmenteita.     Five    minutes  later,  my  blankets   having 

meanwhile   been  transferred   from  the  carriage  to   the 

station  sleeping-room — a  convenience  that  on  the  Uganda 

railway  atones  for  absent  hotels — I  was  in  bed  again. 

Starting,  as  usual,  a  little  before  dawn,  we  found 

ourselves  at  daybreak  on  a  rolling  grass-prairie  literally 

teeming  with  game.     This,  however,  is  not  the  case  here 

at  all  seasons.     In  February,  for  example  (as  will  be 

shown  later),  the  veld  of  Elmenteita  is  comparatively 

deserted  owing  to  seasonal  migration.    To-day  (September 

11)  in  every  direction  stood  troop  beyond  troop  of  zebras, 

outlined  dark  against  the  coming  sunrise.     A  herd    of 

thirty-two    elands   grazed   right   ahead,    mingled    with 

them  beino^  several  ostriches  and  hartebeests,  while  the 

.  .  . 

nearer  foreoTound  was  alive  with  oazelles  in  scores,  and 

a  few  wart-hogs  and  jackals.  Away  on  our  right  m  the 
sunlight  stretched  a  string  of  orange-red  kongoni,  while 
the  distant  horizon  was  silhouetted  with  the  galloping- 
ungainly  forms  of  others  of  their  kind.  Were  these 
neumianni  f 

Holding  forward  (since  "herd-bulls"  are  never  the 
best),  we  descried  a  group  of  three ;  and  beyond,  one 
lone  bull.  To  these  we  glued  attention.  The  last- 
named  took  right  away,  but  after  three  hours'  work  we 
still  kept  touch  of  the  trio.  The  ground  was  perfectly 
open — not  a  scrap  of  "advantage"  or  cover.  Here  and 
there  rose  low,  graduated  hillocks  formed  of  volcanic 
debris,  with  broad  flats  between,  on  the  pools  of  which 
wild-geese  splashed  and  preened,  and  noisy  plovers 
bathed.  At  times  we  seemed  to  walk  almost  through 
the  herds  of  zebra,  which  watched  keenly  yet  undis- 
mayed ;  and  we  frequently  passed  gazelles  and  geese — 
once  even  elands — within  fair  shot.  Yet  hour  after 
hour  the  coveted  trio  held  us  in  check  till  the  heat  of 
the  day  began  to  be  felt.  Then  our  persistent  "  sticking- 
in  "  told,  and  suspicion  slowly  relaxed ;  but  it  was  high 
noon  before  they  offered  a  first  chance  at  a  long  300 
yards,  and  a  ball  in  the  base  of  neck  sent  the  best  bull 
staggering  to  earth.     What  mattered  it  then,  in  those 


ELMENTEITA   IN   SEPTEMBER 


123 


moments  of  triumph,  to  have  to  suflfer  four  hours  of 
blazing  noontide  heat  beneath  a  perpendicular  sun  and 
not  so  much  as  the  shade  of  a  bulrush  ! 

Towards  4  p.m.  we  started  afresh,  and  presently  fell 
in  with  a  herd  of  ten,  two  big  bulls,  one  of  these  a 
specially  grand  beast.  But  every  effort  to  secure  him 
failed.  Always  first  to  go,  first  to  stop,  yet  he  ever  kept 
the  furthest  away.  So  riveted  had  my  attention  been 
upon  the  leader,  with  no  eye  for  his  companions  during 


— —  / '    '  /' 


,/.;///.,/A'    /^^"'y/^ 


Neumann's  hartebeests. 

a  two-hour  chase,  that  it  was  only  w^hen  Elmi  pointed 
out  that  the  second-best  bull  was  within  reasonable 
range  that  I  realised  there  was  another  good  head 
among  them  at  all.  At  250  yards  full  broadside  the 
bullet  took  him  one  foot  behind  the  heart ;  half-an-hour 
later  I  got  in  a  second,  one  foot  above  that  organ,  just 
missing  the  spine.  These  details  are  given  as  further 
illustrating  the  vitality  of  the  African  antelopes.  AVith 
these  two  terrible  wounds  (which  we  could  clearly 
discern  with  the  glass)  this  hartebeest  kept  ahead  of 
us    for    another    long    hour's    hard    going,    and    only 


124  ON    SAFARI 

.succumbed  to  ^  fifth  bullet  (in  the  ueck)  after  the  sun 
had  already  set. 

In  a  siugle  day  I  had  thus  secured  two  animals  that 
had  previously  defied  our  utmost  efi'orts  during  a  fort- 
night's hunting.  The  heads  of  my  two  first  Neumann 
bulls  measured  as  follows — ^ 


LENGTH. 

CIRCUMFEREN'CE. 

TIP  TO  TIP, 

No.  1     , 
No.  2     , 

,     171  ins. 
16|  ins. 

81  ins. 
91  ins. 

6f  ins. 
81  ins. 

The  irides  were  light  hazel  (those  of  Jackson's 
hartebeest  being  pale  j^ellow),  and  they  possessed  a  sort 
of  dew-claw  between  the  cleft  of  the  fore-hoofs.  Their 
dead- weight  we  estimated  at  400  lbs.,  intermediate 
between  B.  jacJcsoni,  which  we  put  at  400  to  450  lbs., 
and  B.  coJcci  at  300  to  350  lbs. 

An  incident  which  occurred  during  our  pursuit  of  this 
wounded  bull  deserves  note.  We  were  attended,  all 
the  time,  by  a  hyena  which,  scenting  blood,  trotted 
along  under  our  lee.  He  never  ranged  up  alongside  the 
game  (which  held  a  500-yard  lead),  but  kept  level  and 
not  100  yards  away.  I  was  keen  to  secure  him,  as  Elmi 
positively  asserted  that  this  hyena  was  difi'erent  to  the 
spotted  hyenas  we  had  already  shot  [HycBna  crocuta), 
and  I  saw  myself  a  distinction.  It  was  probably  of  the 
striped  species  {H.  striata) ;  but  I  dare  not  risk  losing 
our  main  objective,  and  before  that  had  been  secured 
Vv'e  had  already  lost  sight  of  the  hyena  in  the  gathering 
gloom  of  night. 

Another  curious  incident :  At  times,  as  we  passed 
by  troops  of  grazing  gazelles,  our  attendant  hyena 
trotted  through  the  midst  of  these  without  arousing 
alarm  in  their  timid  breasts.  So  incredible  did  this 
appear,  that  I  lay  down  on  an  ant-hill,  sacrificing  precious 
moments,  and  brought  the  glass  to  bear.  There,  beyond 
all  doubt,  was  that  great  gaunt  beast  of  prey  peacefully 

^  These  are  only  average  specimens ;  we  subsequently  obtained 
trophies  exceeding  19  in.«. 


ELMENTEITA   IN  SEPTEMBER 


125 


traversing  herds  of  gazelles,  many  of  which  were  close 
to  him,  some  still  grazing,  others  even  playing,  but 
none  taking;  the  slio-htest  visible  notice. 

The  main  object  at  Elmenteita  having  thus  been 
achieved  in  a  single  day,  I  might  have  proceeded  at 
once  to  my  next  proposed  venture  on  the  Athi  River. 
Unfortunately,  however,  by  a  strange  mistake,  I  lost  all 
the  advantages  of  time  saved,  and  put  myself  to  a  vast 
amount  of  further  trouble  all  unnecessarilv.     For,  on 


<iuit( 


8TKIPED   HYENA. 


coming  wp  to  my  two  prizes,  I  bad  concluded,  quite  errone- 
ously, that  these  hartebeests  were  not  Neumann's,  but 
Coke's  I  There  was  no  excuse  for  this  error,  since  the 
two  species  differ  essentially;  but  I  had  not,  till  that 
moment,  handled  either  animal  or  seen  B.  cokei  at  all. 

Acting  on  this  erroneous  premise,  we  next  morning 
shifted  camp  beyond  Lake  Elmenteita,  a  long  day's 
march  to  the  north-west.  But  here,  instead  of  Bubalis 
neumanni,  we  found  the  western  end  of  the  lake 
swarming  with  nomad  Masai,  whose  vast  flocks  and  herds 
had  effectually  scared  away  all  game. 

During  this  march  I  shot  six  selected  specimens  of 


126  ON   SAFARI 

Thomson's  gazelle,  choosiug  the  best  heads  I  could  see 
among  hundreds.  None  of  the  horns,  however,  exceeded 
13|-  ins.  in  length.  These  are  exc[uisitely  graceful 
little  antelopes,  scarcely  so  large  as  a  roe-deer ;  it  was  a 
lovely  spectacle  to  watch  them  playfully  coursing  each 
other  in  sheer  exuberance  of  spirits,  the  pursued  dodging 
and  doubling  with  the  speed  and  resource  of  a  hare 
before  greyhounds.  They  are  confiding  little  beasties, 
and  can  often  be  approached,  by  circling  around  them, 
within  a  range  of  100  to  120  yards;  but  even  then 
present  but  a  small  mark  for  a  rifle,  since,  diminutive 
as  they  are,  they  possess  the  same  tenacity  of  life 
that  characterises  their  larger  congeners,  and,  unless 
struck  well  forward,  will  carry  on  for  miles  though 
practically  disembowelled.  Their  irides  are  very  dark 
hazel,  and  bucks  that  we  weighed  scaled  from  48 
to  57  lbs. 

On  approaching  the  north-west  end  of  the  lake,  we 
found  that  between  the  higher  plateau  we  had  been  tra- 
versing and  the  actual  shores  was  interposed  a  lower-lying 
plain  a  mile  or  two  in  width.  The  dividing  escarpment 
at  this  point  was  abrupt,  dropping  to  the  plain  below  in 
rugged  crags  of  a  couple  of  hundred  feet ;  and  spying 
from  the  ridge,  we  saw  many  troops  of  zebra  and 
gazelles,  with  a  few  impala  dotted  about.  A  single 
antelope,  however,  at  once  arrested  attention ;  though 
generally  similar  to  the  granti  buck  amidst  which  it 
was,  this  animal  stood  higher  on  its  legs,  was  longer  in 
neck,  and  moreover  displayed  the  black  lateral  band 
characteristic  of  G.  thomsoni,  but  not  of  granti.  A 
near  approach,  in  full  face,  was  imjDossible  ;  but  a  shot 
at  200  yards,  though  it  struck  too  far  back,  appeared 
completely  to  have  disabled  the  stranger.  Then  it 
recovered  and  went  off"  across  the  far-stretched  plain 
further  than  I  could  follow  with  binoculars — further, 
indeed,  than  I  ever  remember  to  have  seen  a  hard-struck 
beast  go  without  stopping.  Elmi,  all  along,  had  asserted 
that  this  was  an  "Aoul"  (Gazella  scemmeringi,  the 
common  species  of  Somaliland),  and  being  a  Somali,  and 


ELMENTEITA   IN   SEPTEMBER  127 

a  reliable  and  intelligent  hunter  to  boot,  lie  ought  to 
have  known.  My  own  impression  of  the  animal  seen, 
however,  but  little  accords  with  descriptions  of  the 
heavily-built  aoul,  the  only  point  of  resemblance  being 
its  habit  of  "bucking,"  or  bounding,  after  the  style  of 
impala  or  springbok,  whenever  it  commenced  to  move. 
There,  for  the  present,  I  must  leave  it. 

Lake  Elmenteita  being  salt,  it  was  necessary  to  camp 
at  its  extreme  west  end,  where  a  lovely  stream  of  sweet 
water  empties  into  it.  This  involved  a  long  and  heavy 
grind  under  the  fierce  midday  sun,  during  which  I  was 
almost  knocked  over  by  a  wart-hog.  The  brute  must 
have  been  sleeping  so  near  the  mouth  of  its  den,  that 
when  an  askari  walked  over  it  the  boar  bolted,  snorting 
and  grunting,  in  a  cloud  of  dust.  I  was  only  a  few  yards 
behind ;  consequently  the  pig  was  all  but  into  my  legs 
before  either  of  us  realised  the  situation.  Luckily  he 
swerved  aside  in  the  nick  of  time,  as  I  had  nothing  but  a 
stick  in  my  hands. 

Once  before,  in  the  Transvaal,  I  had  had  an  even 
closer  shave  with  a  wart-hog.  It  was  the  Twelfth  of 
August,  and  we  were  holding  that  festival  in  the  best 
way  available  in  Africa — francolins  taking  the  place  of 
grouse — when  in  a  patch  of  bush  our  dogs  gave  tongue 
in  a  kev  that  denoted  somethino;  bio'o;er  than  "  oTouse." 
On  hurrying  up,  we  found  a  furious  fight  raging  within 
an  ant-bear's  cave.  Poor  "  Flo  "  backed  out  bleeding — 
she  was  unprepared  for  what  she  had  found  within  that 
hole  ;  but  "  Chops  "  (always  there  when  biting  had  to 
be  done)  stuck  to  it,  I  had  just  reached  the  spot,  and 
w^as  stooping  to  look  down  the  den,  when  a  great  blue- 
grey  beast  filled  the  hollow,  his  ivory  tusks  gleaming  like 
a  white  collar  round  his  neck.  That  was  all  I  saw,  for 
in  an  instant  he  was  on  me — or  rather  where  I  had  been  ; 
for  I  had  jumped  aside,  pulling  trigger  at  the  same 
moment,  the  gun-muzzle  within  six  inches  of  the  beast's 
back.  Through  the  cloud  of  smoke  and  dust  I  saw  the 
unknown  beast  pitch  forward  on  his  head  and  roll  over, 
dead.     The  No.  6  shot  had  shattered  the  vertebrae,  one 


128  ON   SAFARI 

of  the  wads  beino-  driven  rioht  throuo-li  and  stickino; 
inside  the  skin  beyond.  This  boar  weighed  over 
200  lbs.,  with  tusks  projecting  nearly  ten  inches  from 
the  jaws. 

The  country  here  swarmed  with  guinea-fowl,  and  was 
studded  with  thickets  and  clumps  of  euphorbia  and  of 
those  spiky  aloes  which  form  a  favourite  food  of  elephants. 
There  was  plenty  of  old  sign  and  spoor  of  these  animals 
— evidently  made  during  the  rainy  season — as  well  as 
aloes  broken  down,  and  lumps  of  the  fibrous  portions 
chewed  and  diso;oro;ed. 

A  long  low  ridge  impending  our  camp — the  name  of 
the  spot  was  Campi  M'Baruk — was  strewn  with  human 
skulls  and  bones.  Such  objects  are" not  an  uncommon 
spectacle  in  Africa,  yet  I  do  not  remem1)er  to  have  seen 
such  c[uantities  as  here.  It  was  a  regular  Golgotha — the 
result,  perhaps,  of  sorne  intertribal  fray,  or  possibly  of 
small-pox.^ 

It  was  at  tbis  point  that  we  met  with  the  Masai 
hordes  already  mentioned,  their  cattle  filling  the  valley. 
These  savages  displayed  no  sign  of  friendship.  While 
camp  was  being  pitched,  a  band  of  a  dozen  stalwart  El- 
Moran,  or  warriors,  stark  naked  but  for  their  spears  and 
a  coating  of  red  clay,  passed  close  by  without  deigning 
to  take  the  slightest  notice  of  the  white  man.  This  was 
lacking  in  respect  for  the  "dominant  race,"  so  I  sent  a 
messenger,  bidding  them  come  into  my  camp  and  inform 
me  of  the  whereabouts  of  the  game.  They  told  me  the 
nearest  hongoni  were  a  day's  march  to  the  westward, 
— that  is,  towards  the  crater  of  Meningai,  which  was 
quite  out  of  my  course. 

It  was  now  obvious  that  this  whole  venture  Avas  a 
mistake  and  a  failure  :  our  troubles,  moreover,  were 
intensified  by  Elmi  going  down  with  fever,  and  I  had 
myself  "a  touch   of  sun"  from  the  midday's  heat.     I 

^  Mr.  Jackson  tells  me  that,  years  before,  a  trading  caravan  of 
Swaliili,  under  a  man  named  M'Baruk,  was  surprised  at  this  spot  by 
Masai,  who  massacred  the  entire  safari. 


ELMENTEITA   IN   SEPTEMBER  129 

decided  to  fall  back  upou  Eburu,  and  next  morning  we 
struck  and  retraced  our  steps  along  the  lake-shore,  where 
I  had  just  shot  a  one-horned  impala ;  when  we  descried 
a  single  "  Aoul  "  far  out  on  the  open  plain.  He  proved 
hopelessly  wild,  and  after  infinite  manoeuvres,  all  in 
vain,  we  saw  him  join  two  others  of  his  kind,  when  all 
three  made  right  aw^ay  down-wind  behind  us.  I  have 
called  these  animals  "  Aoul  "  merely  for  distinction,  and 
because  it  was  Elmi's  name  for  them,  though  what  they 
actually  were  is  not  proven.  They  were  conspicuously 
distinct  from  anything  else  I  saw  in  East  Africa.  I 
searched  the  same  ground  again  on  my  second  expedition 
(in  February  1906),  but  without  seeing  a  sign  of  the 
aoul. 

A  few  miles  to  the  eastward,  beyond  and  amidst 
some  broken  rocky  ridges,  we  fell  in  with  one  of  those 
immense  ao-o-reo-ations  of  wild  o-ame  that  it  has  been  my 
good  fortune  to  meet  with  on  various  occasions  in  this 
land.  Gazelles  in  vast  numbers  (mostly  does  and  small 
bucks)  thronged  the  foreground — literally  colouring  the 
landscape — while  a  couple  of  elands,  looking  gigantic 
among  such  small  fry,  stood  in  their  midst.  Beyond 
were  numberless  troops  of  zebra,  hartebeests,  and  more 
elands,^  the  whole  assemblage  being  sprinkled  with  wart- 
hogs  and  ostriches  I  In  one  long  straggling  group  I 
counted  over  100  of  these  oiant  birds. 

The  hartebeests  were  inaccessible  ;  but  by  aid  of 
some  broken  ridges,  I  got  well  in  to  three  separate 
groups  of  elands — about  100  in  all — and  enjoyed  the 
sight  at  close  quarters ;  all,  however,  were  females  or 
young  beasts,  not  a  single  heavy  old  bull  among  them. 
Jackals  trotted  about  and — a  curious  addition — -wild 
geese  {clienalopex)  fed  on  the  driest  plain. 

I  secured  here  two  of  the  finest  granti  bucks  that  we 
had  then  obtained  :  the  first  in  company  with  half-a- 
dozen  does,  while  the  second  had  a  harem  of  thirty-four. 

1  Note  that  we  had  seen  no  elands  in  this  district  sisweeksbefore 
— in  July — except  a  single  young  beast  on  the  Enderit  River.  Now 
was  there  a  sign  of  them  when  I  returned  here  later,  in  February. 

K 


130 


ON   SAFARI 


Their  beautiful  annulated  horns  were  almost  identical, 
measuring  each  25  ins.,  by  6^  ins.  in  basal  circumference, 
and  12  ins.  between  tips.  While  off-skinning  the  second,  a 
tawny  eagle  {Aq.  rapax)  joined  the  throng  of  assembling 
vultures  and  marabou,  and  I  secured  it  with  a  Paradox 
bullet.  This  is  the  commonest  of  the  East-African 
eagles,  next  to  it  beins;  the  Bateleur  and  the  white-headed 
I  noticed  a  single  vulture  which  with  its 


fish-eagles 


TAAVNY   EAGLE. 

A  matutinal  "shake-up"  before  starting  the  day's  work. 


pale-bluish  plumage  and  bright-red  head  resembled 
the  American  kiog-vulture.  I  presume  this  w^ould  be 
^togyps  auricularis. 

An  awkward  accident  occurred  with  one  of  these  two 
Tbucks.  Elmi  had  seized  it,  somewhat  recklessly,  by  the 
iliind-leg  :  when  it,  swift  as  thought,  swung  round,  and  its 
sharp  horn  dealt  him  a  severe  blow  on  the  shin.  Owing 
to  this,  and  Ehui  being  extremely  weak  with  fever,  we 
were  obliged  to  change  our  course  and  make  direct  for 
Elmenteita  station,  whence  I  sent  Elmi  into  hospital 
at  Nairobi.  This  was  a  heavy  loss  to  me,  Elmi  Hassan 
having  been  my  constant  companion  during  three 
months  and  a  most  trustworthy  and  intelligent  hunter. 


1      )  5       >       > 


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ELMENTEITA   IN   SEPTEMBER  131 

I  selected,  as  gunbearer,  a  Swaliili  "boy"  named  Hamisi, 
whom  we  had  noted  for  his  keen  eyesight  and  aptness 
in  hunting. 

That  afternoon  (September  14)  a  tremendous  thunder- 
storm broke  with  tropical  rains.  The  night,  also,  was  dis- 
turbed ;  first  jackals,  then  hyenas,  wailed  all  around, 
setting  the  station  dogs  barking  madly  until  11  p.m., 
when  a  pair  of  lions  came  along  and  silenced  the  lot. 
These  last  came  so  near  that  I  loaded  the  Paradox  and 
went  out ;  but  it  was  a  black-dark  nio;ht,  rainino-  and 
nothing  could  be  seen.  Lions  have  a  great  stronghold 
in  the  belt  of  strong  bush  that  lies  facing  the  mountain- 
range  of  Eburu.  Two  Englishmen,  we  were  told,  had 
recently  tried  for  them,  tying  up  a  sheep  and  waiting  in 
prepared  shelters  on  two  nights.  On  both  occasions,  the 
lions  carried  off  the  bait  without  beino;  seen  in  the  dark. 

Next  morning  we  resumed  our  march  towards  Eburu, 
the  safari  proceeding  direct,  while  I  tried  the  lovely 
stretch  of  woodland  lying  along  the  base  of  the  hills, 
where  in  July  we  had  seen  so  much  game.  Here  again, 
we  found  ourselves  supplanted  by  the  intrusive  Masai, 
who,  with  their  herds,  had  occupied  the  whole  beautiful 
strath.  Beyond,  however,  among  the  foothills,  we  fell 
in  wdth  hartebeest,  and  I  secured  a  third  Neumann  bull, 
remarkable  for  his  exceptionally  massive  horns,  which 
measured  11|-  ins.  in  basal  circumference. 

After  some  manoeuvres  with  Chanler's  reed  bucks, 
fruitless  as  usual,  we  finally  reached  Eburu — since 
abandoned  as  a  station.  Bad  as  the  lions  had  been  last 
night  at  Elmenteita,  they  were  as  nothing  compared  with 
the  rats  at  Eburu  to-nio;ht !     No  sooner  were  lio-hts  out 

o  O 

than  the  brutes  were  running  in  droves  all  over  me, 
gnawing  bags,  boots,  gun-cases,  everything.  I  relit 
the  lamp,  but  it  burnt  out,  and  after  the  last  match 
had  been  struck,  they  were  free  to  eat  even  the  boots 
that  I  hurled  in  a  vain  effort  to  keep  them  at  bay. 
Three-thirty  brought  relief,  for  then  the  early  train 
(running  thrice  a  week)  came  along  and  carried  us  off 
to  Nairobi. 


132 


ON   SAFARI 


During  tlie  four  days  I   had   secured  the  following 
specimens — 

Three  Neumann's  hartebeest,  bulls. 
One  Sing-sing  waterbuck,  bull,  as  helow. 
Two  Grant's  gazelle,  bucks. 
Six  Thomson's  gazelle,  bucks. 
One  impala,  buck. 
One  wart-hog,  boar. 
One  tawny  eagle. 
Sundry  guinea-fowl. 


SING-SING  WATERBUCK. 


CHAPTER   XII 

ELMENTEITA 

(ll)    IN    FEBRUARY 

Early  in  February  1906,  eighteen  months  after  the 
events  described  in  the  last  chapter,  we  returned  to 
Elmenteita,  our  primary  object  being  to  set  out  thence 
on  an  expedition  among  the  Laikipia  mountains,  distant 
some  seventy  or  eighty  miles  to  the  northward.  Before 
starting,  however,  we  intended  to  spend  a  few  days  at 
this  point,  renewing  the  happy  memories  of  1904. 

To  all  outward  appearance,  Elmenteita  remained 
precisely  as  we  had  left  it — the  station,  a  tiny  tin  shanty 
standing  utterly  alone,  a  speck  amidst  boundless  veld  and 
prairie,  across  which  runs  that  puny  three-foot  railway, 
a  mere  thread,  over  hill  and  dale.  Great  changes,  never- 
theless, had  occurred — changes  that,  as  foreshadowing 
development  in  our  new  colony,  one  must  regard  with 
satisfaction,  though  in  the  breast  of  sportsman  and 
naturalist  a  pang  of  regret  will  not  be  suppressed. 

The  whole  of  the  lands  south  of  the  railway  line  had 
meanwhile  been  sold  to  private  owners,  and  we  could 
only  survey  at  a  distance  our  erstwhile  lovely  hunting- 
grounds  stretching  away  down  the  Enderit  River  to 
Lake  Nakuru.  True,  the  new  owners  were  said  to  be 
oblio;ino;  enouoh  in  o-rantins;  leave  to  shoot — some  even 
wantino-  the  oame  destroved  ;  but  in  Africa  we  ask  no 
man's  leave,  and  it  was  to  the  north  side  we  had  come 
to  turn  our  attention.^ 

1  Only  a  few  months  later  we  read  in  the  Nairobi  newspaper 
Tlie  Globe  Trotter,  that  all  the  lands  northward  from  the  railway 
extending  to  Lake  Elmenteita  and  beyond  it  to  the  escarpment,  had 
likewise  been  sold — so  rapid  hereaway  is  the  process  of  colonisation  ! 

133 


134  ON   SAFARI 

The  rolling  treeless  veld  that  extends  northward  from 
Elmenteita,  with  its  game,  has  already  been  described 
(p.  122  et  seq.).  But  there  was,  in  February,  no  such 
abounding  aggregation  of  wild-life  as  we  had  met  with 
here  in  July,  August  and  September.  That  circumstance, 
however,  wrs  merely  due  to  the  seasonal  migrations  of 
the  animals,  and  had  no  relation  to  changing  ownership. 
The  zebra,  for  example,  leave  this  region  early  in 
December,  not  reappearing  till  May  or  June ;  while  of 
the  other  animals  that  were  so  abundant  in  July  and 
August,  perhaps  a  tenth,  or  less,  remained  in  February. 
Not  that  there  was  any  real  lack  of  animal-life  even  now. 
The  veld,  though  no  longer  crowded,  was  fairly  peopled 
with  beautiful  creatures.  There  were  no  zebras,  but  a 
few  hartebeests  and  ostriches  still  lingered ;  groups  of 
granti  moved  about  wdth  stately  gait,  and  herds  of 
"  Tommies "  chased  and  gambolled  in  their  sportive 
style.  Wart-hogs,  owing  to  their  subterranean  habit,  are 
probably  less  mobile,  and  our  first  day  here  (February 
8),  being  dull  and  drizzling,  we  saw  great  numbers, 
including  some  real  monsters.  One  solitary  boar,  in 
particular,  our  hunters  at  first  mistook  for  a  rhino, 
and  we  decided  to  spend  the  next  day  in  acquiring 
his  mask.  That  mornins;,  however,  broke  brie^ht  and 
hot,  and  never  a  pig  could  we  see  !  They  were  then 
all  underground. 

I  shot  that  day  a  superb  granti,  a  solitary  buck,  with 
25-in.  horns  ;  but  merely  mention  the  fact  to  illustrate 
a  phase  that  is  worth  note  in  this  African  shooting. 
Though  severely  wounded  by  the  first  shot,  the  buck 
held  on,  on — till  it  was  clear  w^e  should  never  overtake 
him  ;  never,  at  least,  by  following  "  hot-foot."  I  there- 
fore recalled  my  men,  much  to  their  disgust,  and  lay 
down  to  watch.  The  buck  then,  being  alone,  also  laid 
down,  a  mile  ahead,  and,  growing  stifter,  at  the  end  of 
an  hour  I  was  able  to  approach  again  within  200  yards, 
when  a  second  bullet  (in  ribs)  further  crippled  him  :  but 
we  still  had  to  put  in  a  second  thirty  minutes,  Ij^ing 
patiently  in  that  sweltering  heat,  ere  he  would  allow 


3  1      >\ 5       »        5       ) 

5   >         3  J       1  13 


1      ^    >0         ■>  3   5 


3     3    3   ■>     3      3 


)         3 


3     3        e 


>»' 


<: 
> 

o 

D 


:5: 


o 
o 


o 


ELMENTEITA   IN   FEBRUARY  135 

another  approach  near  enough  to  finish  him  with  a  third 
bullet. 

A  prize  which  I  regarded  with  even  greater  satisfaction 
this  day  was  a  horned  female  of  the  Thomson  gazelle. 
This  does  at  best  carry  very  tiny  horns,  and  even  those 
are  most  difticult  to  distinguish  owing  to  their  horns 
(only  4  to  5  ins.  in  length)  being  shorter  than  the  mobile 
ears  and  usually  concealed  thereby.  Then,  after  closely 
scrutinising  through  the  glass  a  hundred  does,  when 
one  at  length  detects  the  special  specimen  sought,  that 
particular  female  may  be  accompanied  by  a  fawn — w^hose 
life  not  only  the  game-laws,  but,  far  more,  a  sportsman's 
instincts  render  sacred.  To-day,  however,  after  many  a 
futile  effort,  I  succeeded  not  only  in  finding  a  horned 
yeld  doe,  but  in  approaching  and  securing  her.  Her 
horns,  irregular  and  of  somewhat  abnormal  appearance, 
measured  4  and  4j  ins.,  and  she  weighed  32  lbs. 

That  night  in  camp  we  had  the  usual  lion-alarm,  and, 
on  turning  out,  distinctly  saw^  two  animals  moving  about 
phantom-like  in  the  moonlight  at  100  to  150  yards. 
These  w^e  w^atched  for  quite  half-an-hour,  but  could 
never  distinguish  substance  from  shadow  clearly  enough 
to  shoot.  In  the  morning,  we  found  that  a  gazelle  had 
been  killed  close  by,  and  the  spoor  showed  that  the 
marauders  were  leopards. 

Beyond  the  prairies  eastwards,  a  league  or  two 
away,  rise  a  series  of  rugged  conical  koppies  which,  we 
found,  were  another  home  of  Chanler's  reedbuck.  These 
most  elusive  little  antelopes,  regular  rock-jumpers,  ever 
alert  and  intensely  wary,  have  generally  beaten  us,  partly 
owing  to  their  highly-protective  coloration.  Though 
their  heads  and  necks  are  tawny,  yet  the  whole  body- 
colour  is  as  grey  as  the  rocks  they  frequent — indis- 
tinguishable therefrom,  especially  at  long  range.  This 
day  (February  10),  though  both  scored  hits,  we  were 
yet  beaten  by  two  of  the  wounded  among  the  crags  and 
steep  slopes.  The  third,  however,  being  severely  crippled, 
betook  itself  to  some  rough  scrub-clad  rocks  below,  where, 
after  a  laborious  chase  of  two  hours,  I  eventually  secured 


136 


ON   SAFARI 


it  with  my  very  last  cartridge.  What  strikes  one  on 
examining  these  antelopes  newly-killed,  are  the  immense 
ears  and  the  big  prominent  eye,  set  high  up  in  the  broad 
forehead — no  wonder  they  can  see  and  hear !  The 
irides  are  rich  dark  hazel,  and  a  narrow  black  blaze  runs 
down  centre  of  face. 

During  this  cripple-chase,  while  passing  through 
some  terribly  rocky  ground,  I  found  myself  in  the  midst 
of  a  troop  of  baboons,  some  running  on  all-fours,  others 
perched  on  rock-pinnacles.     I  shot  one  of  the  latter,  a 

female  of  the  East-African 
species, Pa/9^o  iheanus,  which 
was  busy  eating  a  wild  fruit 
like  a  "devil's  tomato,"  called 
here  by  a  pretty  Swahili  name 
that  I  forget.  The  day's  bag 
also  included  an  impala  and 
a  pair  of  Cavendish's  dikclik, 
the  male  scaling  \\\  lbs. 
{JMadoqua  cavendishi),  with 
horns  3^-  ins.  in  length  ;  the 
female  weighed  a  good  pound 
more  than  her  lord.  I  saw 
them  feeding  outside  some 
very  rocky  scrub,  stalked  the 
spot,  and  got  both  with  a 
right-and-left  of  buckshot.  I  also  wounded  an  ostrich, 
but  failed  to  secure  him. 

Leaving  Elmenteita,  we  marched  round  the  south- 
eastern end  of  the  lake,  seeincr  on  route  several  more 
immense  wart-hogs,  a  few  ostriches  and  other  game.  The 
country  here  is  absolutely  lovely,  park-like,  studded  with 
clumps  of  mimosa,  while  "  fever-trees  "  like  huge  beeches, 
except  for  their  vicious  thorns  and  blood-red  inner  bark, 
fringe  the  lake-shore  ;  there  are  rugged  koppies  in  mid- 
distance,  and  a  mountain  background  to  complete  the 
picture.  We  encamped  on  the  Karriendoos  River,  on 
the  north  side  of  the  lake,  and  half-a-mile  inland  from 
the  river-mouth.^ 

^  See  sketch  map  at  p.  14. 


chanler's  keedbuck  (female). 


ELMENTEITA   IN   FEBRUARY  137 

A  curious  example  of  animal-cunning  occurred  on  this 
march.  Twice  I  walked  on  to  a  sleeping  jackal,  and  on 
eacli  occasion  the  animal,  after  running  thirty  or  forty 
3'ards,  sprang  high  in  air,  repeating  the  leap  a  few  yards 
beyond,  in  apparent  anticipation  of  the  advent  of  a 
bullet !  It  was  the  more  remarkable  as  these  beasts  are 
rarely  shot  at.  There  are  in  East  Africa  two  species  of 
jackal — the  ordinary  fox-hke  animal  with  white-tipped 
brush  {Cants  aureus),  and  the  beautiful  black-backed 
jackal  (C.  mesomelas)  with  golden-spangled  sides,  and 
wdiose  brush  deepens  to  black  at  the  end.  Both  species 
are  equally  abundant.  I  weighed  three  common  jackals, 
two  females  15  and  16|-  lbs.,  one  male  17^  lbs. 

A  Night  with  Pachyderms 

Our  immediate  objective  on  Lake  Elmenteita  was  to 
obtain  specimens  of  the  hippopotami    which    frequent 
that   salt   lake    in  some  numbers.      According  to   our 
information,  these  great  amphibians,  while  spending  the 
day  in  mid-water,  approach  the  sweet-water  rivers  to 
drink  at  dusk,   thus    affording   the  chance   of  a  shot. 
Our  river,  the  Karriendoos,  was  quite  a  small  stream, 
not  so  big  as  a  Northumbrian  burn,  and  towards  evening 
we  concealed  ourselves  on  the  point  of  a  rush-clad  spit 
that  commanded  its  entrance.     Several  hippos  were  in 
view  in  the  open  water  outside  and  a  wondrous  scene  in 
tropical  wild-life  unfolded  as  evening  advanced.     Skeins 
of  huge  spur- winged  geese,  black  and  white,  flighted  in 
to  drink  the  sweet  water ;  ducks  also  of  varied  kinds — 
the    equatorial   representative    of   our    mallard    (Anas 
undulata),  together  with  pintail  and  shoveler,  familiar 
in  Europe.     There  were  teal  of  two  kinds,  garganeys 
and  pochard  {erythrophthalma) — all  these  flew  or  swam 
within  half-gunshot  of  our  hide.     Outside,  among  the 
rushes,  swam  groups  of   the  singular  Maccoa  pochard 
[Erismatura.  maccoa),  ducks  whose  plumage  is  rather 
a  glossy  filament  like  that  of  grebes,  and  with  long  stifl" 
cormorant -like  tails  which  the  drakes  often  carry  bolt 
upright.     On  the  foreshores  waded  sacred  and  glossy 


138  ON   SAFARI 

ibises,  greenslianks,  and  plovers — specially  noticeable 
being  the  spur- winged  species  {Hoijlopterus  speciosus) 
in  its  handsome  contrasted  colours  that  recall  our  grey 
plover  (>S'.  helvetica)  in  its  summer  dress.  At  the  point 
of  a  rush-clad  spit  stood  a  Goliath  heron,  stiffly  erect  and 
with  the  silvery  neck-plumes  finely  offset  by  the  dark 
maroon  breast.  On  another  occasion  at  this  spot  we 
recognised  a  pair  of  the  great  African  jabiru  or  saddle- 
bill.  Far  out  on  the  lake  sat  pelicans,  flamingoes  and 
grebes. 

The   hippos,    however,    though    they    floated,    and 
splashed   hard    by,   raising   vast   heads    to    yawn    and 


HIPPOS   IN   LAKE  ELMENTEITA. 


exposing  great  curving  ivories,  carefully  kept  beyond 
range.  So  intensely  interesting  was  the  sight  that  we 
lingered  on  till  past  dusk  ere  taking  our  campward  way. 

The  moon  being  some  days  past  the  full,  the  dark- 
ness beneath  the  forest-trees  that  fring-ed  the  lake  was 
intense — indeed  I  could  barely  keep  in  touch  with  my 
Swahili  gunbearer,  Mabruki,  tliough  only  a  yard  ahead. 

While  feeling  our  way  thus  through  forest,  the 
stillness  of  night  was  suddenly  shocked  by  a  loud  shrill 
snort  on  our  immediate  front  and  apparently  not 
fifteen  yards  ahead.  Then,  contrary  to  all  orders, 
Mabruki  insanely  fired  my  big  '450  into  that  enveloping 
pall  of  darkness.  No  human  eye — not  even  a  savage 
eye — could  conceivably  have  seen  anj'thing  to  aim  at. 
Mabruki  had  lost  his  head. 


ELMEXTEITA   IX   FEBRUARY  139 

After  the  shot,  stillness  reigned  as  before.  There 
was  no  sio-n  of  a  charo'e,  no  crash  of  a  fallino-  or  a  flyiuo^ 
foe — only  silence,  presently  broken  by  my  brother 
asking  from  behind.  "'  What's  happened  ?  "  A  few  yards 
ahead,  we  found  thick  bush,  impenetrable  ;  so,  leaving 
a  handkerchief  to  mark  the  exact  sj)ot,  we  resumed 
our  course,  intendiuo-  to  return  bv  davlio^ht.  Little 
recked  we  that  lono;  before  that  dav  should  break  we 
were  destined  to  hear  that  terrible  snort  once  more — 
but  crasfiige  qiicerere. 

The  hippos,  we  ascertained,  had  recently  been 
disturbed  at  this  point,  which  explained  their  shyness  in 
approaching  the  waters  of  Karriendoos.  AVe  therefore 
changed  our  tactics  and  decided  to  attack  them  by  night, 
when  they  come  ashore  to  feed  far  and  wide  on  the 
grassy  veld.  The  moon  being  just  past  the  full, 
favoured  this  enterprise,  and  we  gave  orders  for  a  start 
at  2.30  a.m.  next  morning.  It  was,  however,  but  a 
little  after  midnight  that  we  were  aroused  by  the  night- 
watchmen,  who  excitedly  stated  that  there  w^as  already 
a  hippo  within  sight  of  the  camp.  This,  on  turning  out 
in  pyjamas,  we  at  once  verified  for  ourselves.  There, 
not  300  yards  away  on  the  open  prairie,  the  great 
pachyderm  was  plainly  visible  in  the  bright  moon- 
rays.  Pulling  on  coats  and  camp-shoes,  we  were 
ready  for  action  and  away  within  thii'ty  seconds.  The 
intruder  deigned  no  sign  of  notice,  and  soon  we  had 
slipped  in  to  what  looked  well  within  fifty  yards,  at 
which  point  I  whispered  "  That's  near  enough ;  let's 
stop  to  fire,"  and  had  already  dropped  down  in  order  to 
rest  the  '450  on  my  knee,  when  our  huge  opponent  at 
last  detected  us.  Again  that  terrible  hissing  snort,  and 
in  a  moment  he  had  turned  upon  us."  I  could  not  rise, 
so  fired  both  my  barrels,  my  brother  (who  remained  on 
foot)  only  one,  realising  that  we  were  caught  and  re- 
servino-  his  second  for  contino-encies.     On  reachino-  back 

o  o  o 

for  my  second  gun,  I  found  that  the  valiant  Mabruki 
had  o'one — he  was  already  fifty  yards  a  way  camp  ward. 
But  no  second  gun  was  needed.     So  far  as  one  could 


140 


ON   SAFARI 


judge  in  the  fickle  moonlight,  the  great  beast  still 
continued  his  forward  onrush,  but  there  was  another 
movement — downward  :  and  in  five  more  yards  he  had 
gradually  subsided,  ploughing  a  trench  with  his  snout 
ere  he  rolled  over  flat  on  his  broadside  not  thrice  his 
own  length  from  where  I  sat.  Then  the  sense  of  relief 
and  of  danger  averted  struck  home  together  :  for  in  that 


FACED   ROUND   IN   THE   MOONLIGHT. 


open  ground,  short  of  dropping  the  enemy  dead,  there 
could  have  been  but  small  chance  of  escape. 

To  make  sure,  w^e  put  in  two  more  bullets  in  the 
heart  and  presently  the  stertorous  breathing  had  ceased. 
Then  cautiously  drawing  in,  we  discovered  that  our 
prize  was  not  the  harmless  hippo  after  all,  but  a 
gigantic  bull-rhinoceros !  This  fact  our  men  had 
learned  earlier — that  snort  had  enlightened  them  :  it 
explained  Mabruki's  sudden  flight,  though  Ali  Yama, 
my  brother's  Somali  hunter,  had  stood  firm.  This  rhino 
carried  mao;nificent  horns,  the  front  one  over  28  ins.  in 
length,  second   13   ins.,  while  further  up  was  a  third 


13        '   ' 
1„  *       * 


J         )  J  J      3     J          5 

•>    »  '»  3       3              3           3 

.°3 

'                        '  '  3333,3           33          3           ,, 

3                      "  >  >',         ''3'3'??           ' 

3        3       '3'  3  33'!          1,3'            3''         " 

'''3^3,333',  '3'      '\    ?       '^      ^     ,^3', 


RHINO.  BULB^AS   HE   FELL. 


THE   THKEE-HORNED   RHIXO  S    HEAD. 

Lake  Elmenteita  in  background. 


ELMENTEITA   IN   FEBRUARY  141 

horn,  more  or  less  rudimentary.  After  a  cursory 
examination,  we  returned  to  bed  at  1.20. 

At  three  o'clock  we  turned  out  aQ;ain,  but  in  five 
hours'  walk  failed  to  find  a  hippo  ashore,  though  several 
were  orruntins:  and  blowing  close  outside  the  rushes.  I 
stalked  one  of  these  and  at  about  fifty  yards  fired  at 
his  head — so  much,  that  is  to  say,  as  was  above  water, 
say  three  inches.  The  light  was  most  uncertain  for 
fine  shooting,  for  the  moon  being  in  zenith,  perpendicu- 
lar, the  nio;ht-sig;hts  lent  no  assistance.  Yet  the  ball 
seemed  to  strike  fair  and  square,  since  no  water  flew  up  : 
but  we  saw  that  hippo  no  more.  He  disappeared  without 
leaving  a  ripple  or  the  slightest  clue  to  guide  us.  What 
a  disturbance  that  shot  created  !  From  the  trees  over- 
head clattered  out  guinea-fowl  in  scores,  while  all  the 
peoples  of  the  wilderness,  geese  and  pelicans,  flamingoes, 
ibis,  cranes,  and  the  rest  protested  in  strident  cries 
ao'ainst  that  outrasre  on  the  decencies  of  nioiit. 

As  the  dawn  broke  we  thouoht  we  heard  a  lion  close 
by ;  it  proved,  however,  to  be  an  ostrich,  the  two 
notes  being  singularly  alike.  Then  followed  another 
startling  cry,  an  explosive  croak  coming  from  the 
heavens,  twice  repeated.  It  was  a  Goliath  heron,  sailing 
overhead  from  the  forests  above.  Presently,  with  set 
wings,  the  great  bird  swept  dowuAvards  and  settled  on 
a  rush-clad  spit  a  mile  away.  Ducks  in  successive  packs 
(chiefly  mallard,  pintail  and  shoveler)  were  stream- 
ing in  towards  the  lake,  where  we  also  observed  sacred 
ibis,  stilts,  greenshanks,  ruifs  and  green  sandpipers. 

Returning  to  camp  after  the  adventures  of  this 
night,  we  examined  the  rhino.  All  our  three  bullets, 
we  found,  had  got  well  home  ;  but  the  shot  that  had 
actually  done  the  deed  was  little  short  of  a  miracle — 
Providential.  Missing  by  a  hair's-breadth  the  two  great 
horns  as  the  beast  came  on  headlong,  it  had  crashed  into 
the  massive  neck  between  the  ears,  smashing  the  spinal 
column.  Had  the  ball  touched  either  horn,  it  must 
have  been  deflected. 

It  was  my  pony,  "  Goldfinch,"  we  now  learned,  that 


142 


ON   SAFARI 


had  first  called  the  watchman's  attention  to  the  rhino, 
by  whinnying  and  straining  on  the  picket-ropes.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  this  was  the  same  rhino  we  had  run  into 
earlier  in  the  evening ;  for  this  is  not  a  "  rhino  country," 
and  there  was  no  spoor  or  "  sign  "  of  their  presence. 
This  beast  had  been  travelling  along  the  lake-shore 
when  Mabruki's  shot  turned  him  back  at  8  p.m.,  but 
by  12.30  p.m.,  midnight,  he  was  back  again — probably 
in  bad  humour — and  this  time  almost  into  our  camp  ! 


SACRED   IBIS. 


Here  are  put  down  for  comparison  the  measurements 
of  this  and  of  another  big  rhino  bull  that  I  shot 
subsequently  at  Simba — 


Two  Rhino  Bulls. 
Length  over-all,  snout  to  tip- 
tail  .... 

Height  at  shoulder  (straight) 
Girth     ,,        ,, 
Circumference  head  (behind 
2nd  horn) 
„  front  horn  at 

base  . 
,,  rear  horn  at 

base  . 
Length  of  front  horn  . 


(1)  Elmenteita. 

12  ft.  8  ins. 
5  ft.  7  ins. 
9  ft.  0  ins. 

4  ft.  4  ins. 

2  ft.  2i  ins. 

1  ft.  5h  ins. 

2  ft.  4|  ins. 


(2)  Simba. 

12  ft.  Tins. 
4  ft.  6^  ins. 
7  ft.  9I  ins. 


1  ft.  9  ins. 

1  ft.  41  ins. 
1  ft.  5|  ins. 


A  few  days  later  I  heard,  for  the   third  time,  the 


ELMENTEITA   IN   FEBRUARY  143 

curious  liissing  snort  of  a  rliiiio.  This  time  it  \yas 
repeated  tlirice  in  rapid  succession  and  close  at  hand, 
my  two  men  at  once  whispering  "  Kifaru."  We  were 
at  the  moment  after  hippo,  creeping  along  the  narrow 
belt  of  sharp  rocks  and  lava  which  separates  the  deep 
water  of  the  hke  from  dense  impenetrable  jungle  on  the 
Landward  side  (impenetrable  save  by  creeping  along  the 
low  tunnels  made  by  hippos).  It  was  no  place  to  take 
on  a  rhino.  AVe  therefore  lay  low,  passing  an  anxious 
quarter  of  an  hour.  Afterwards  by  a  detour  we  picked 
up  the  spoor  inland  ;  but  that  rhino  had  travelled  afar. 

After  Hippo 

'Twere  tedious  to  relate  in  detail  all  the  efibrts  we 
made  to  secure  the  coveted  hippo.  Morning  after  morn- 
ing we  set  forth  in  the  small  hours,  scoured  by  moon- 
light every  green  meadow  and  grassy  pasture  for  miles 
around  the  lake,  yet  never  once  did  we  succeed  in 
finding  the  great  amphibians  ashore.  Once,  it  is  true, 
I  surprised,  close  at  hand,  a  half-grown  "toto"  among 
the  reeds,  but  him  I  let  de23art  in  peace.  As  they 
refused  to  meet  us  on  land,  we  next  tried  to  tackle 
them  in  the  water. 

On  seeing  a  hippo  near  the  shore  it  is  possible  to 
reach  the  nearest  point  of  land  by  advancing  at  the 
moment  he  disappears,  lying  low  before  his  eyes  again 
break  the  surface.  While  stalking  them  thus  we  noticed 
the  curious  fact  that  their  snorts  and  grunts  are  dis- 
tinctly audible  from  far  under  water,  and  that  although 
no  signs  or  air-bubbles  reach  the  surface. 

The  target  presented  by  a  hippo  when  resting  at  the 
surface  is  extremely  small.  There  are  his  nostrils,  repre- 
sented by  the  size  of  a  man's  hand  held  flat ;  a  foot  or 
two  behind  these,  often  separated  by  water,  rises  the 
prominent  upper  portion  of  the  cranium,  carrying  the 
eyes  and  little  pig-like  ears.  The  total  height  of  this, 
as  exposed,  is  perhaps  four  inches  ;  but,  to  be  fatal,  the 
bullet  must  take  only  the  lowest  inch.     At  daybreak  on 


144  ON   SAFARI 

Februnry  14,1  managed  to  place  a  '450  solid  ball  within 
some  decimals  of  that  spot  with  manifest  and  immediate 
results,  the  huge  bull  rolling  over  and  over,  wallowing 
in  the  water  for  over  half-an-hour,  all  ends  up.  Now 
his  four  stumpy  legs  were  in  sight,  anon  the  vast  head 
and  fore-end  reared  up  to  fall  back  with  sounding  splash, 
churning  the  still  green  surface  into  crimson  foam. 
After  thirty  minutes  of  this  flurry,  this  apparent  death 
agony,  the  beast  subsided,  though  we  could  still  hear 
grunts  and  groans  from  the  depths  below.  I  left  men 
to  watch  for  his  reappearance,  and  at  five  that  afternoon 
was  gratified  to  receive  the  report,  "  Him  finish." 

Next  morning  we  set  out  at  4  a.m.,  twenty  hands, 
with  ropes  and  axes  and  the  rest  to  bring  him  in.  But 
it  jDroved  a  day  of  bitter  disappointment — the  cup 
dashed  from  one's  lips  !  For  not  a  sign  of  this,  or  of 
my  other  wounded  hippo,  did  we  ever  see  :  whether  a 
hippo  can  recover  from  such  a  blow,^  or  whether  he 
goes  ashore  to  die,  at  least  the  trophies  were  lost  to  me, 
and  no  better  luck  had  befallen  my  brother.  After  this 
week  of  labour,  up  half  the  nights  and  most  of  the 
days,  struggling  through  the  roughest  places  on  earth, 
canebrakes,  thorn-jungle,  cruel  rocks  and  lava,  under 
an  equatorial  sun,  or  a  waning  moon — the  hippo  had 
beaten  us. 

On  Lake  Elmenteita  we  noticed  the  assemblages  of 
swallows  preparing  for  their  northward  journey.  The 
earliest  of  these  mobilisations  occurred  on  February  14, 
when  they  congregated  in  thousands  on  the  islets, 
crowding  the  low  thorns.  By  February  17  all  these 
swallows  had  passed  on  ;  but  we  observed  similar  assem- 
blages at  various  other  points  up  to  the  end  of  March. 

On  the  afternoon  of  February  13,  during  a  heavy 
shower  of  rain,  we  enjoyed  quite  a  chorus  of  song-birds  ; 
but  this  ceased  on  the  sun  coming  out  an  hour  or  so 
later.  On  the  15th  a  skylark  (of  sorts)  began  to  sing. 
Its  note  was  inferior  to  that  of  our  species  ;   but  its 

^  Mr.  Jackson   widtes  me  :    "  They  do  recover."     See  also   his 
remarks  in  Big  Game  Shooting,  Badminton  Library,  I,  p.  273. 


ELMENTEITA   IN   FEBRUARY  145 

fliglit  and  actions,  witli  the  fluttering  descent,  were  pre- 
cisely similar.  I  also  noticed  here  a  tree-pipit  descend- 
ing with  the  same  hovering  insect-like  flight  it  uses  at 
home  during  the  nesting-season.  Here,  however,  it  was 
silent.  Another  of  our  small  British  migrants  that  we 
noticed  on  Lake  Elmenteita  was  the  wheatear. 

Impressive  as  had  been  the  sight  of  monster  pachy- 
derms still  roaming  this  earth  in  flesh  and  blood,  and 
not  as  extinct  mammoths  in  some  geological  museum, 
yet  the  sight  of  these  tiny  British  warblers  here  on  the 
far  equator,  was  scarcely  less  striking. 


AN  AFiiiCAX  LARK,  OR  "  LONG-CLAW  "  {Macronyx  CTOceios). 
Throat  and  lower  parts,  also  eyebrow,  golden-yellow. 

Following  are  my  brother's  impressions  of  these  days 
and  nights  on  Lake  Elmenteita — 

"  Wlien  the  hippo  had  beaten  us  by  daylight  and 
we  tried  the  alternative  of  a  night-attack,  some  new 
sensations  were  experienced — sensations  that  cannot, 
perhaps,  be  entirely  expressed  in  words  unless  the  spirit 
of  poetry  be  inborn.  How  intangible  and  weird  is  the 
environment  as  one  sets  forth  at  midnight  with  only 
the  silver-fretted  light  of  the  moon  as  a  guide  !  One 
naturally  holds  the  open  ground,  avoiding  the  deep 
shade  of  trees  or  banks,  not  only  to  save  the  risk  of 
falling  into  pitfall  or  unseen  obstacle,  but  by  an  un- 
conscious dread  of  the  unknown  that  is  hidden  in  dark- 
ness. So,  too,  one  imagines  that  safety  is  better  assured 
where  two  or  three  are  gathered  together.  Few,  in  fact, 
would  care  to  face  alone  the  dano-ers  of  the  wild  African 

L, 


146  ON   SAFARI 

niglit,  since  out  there  the  night  is  very  much  alive — 
more  so  than  the  clay.  The  rush  of  something  in  the 
bush,  a  scuffle  and  clatter  ahead,  cause  a  chill  sensation 
to  run  uninvited  through  one's  nerves  ;  it  is  probably 
only  some  antelope  or  a  bush-pig,  or  a  pack  of  guinea- 
fowl  disturbed  at  roost ;  but  it  might  have  been  a  lion 
or  a  rhino.  Along  the  lake-shore,  from  beyond  the 
fringing  reeds,  resound  the  sullen  grunts  of  the  hipj^o, 
and  horrid  splashes  of  water  recur — one  cannot  see 
where. 

"  From  away  to  the  left  comes  a  long-drawn  growl. 
•'  Lion,'  some  one  whisj)ers.  '  No,'  mutters  a  shikari 
in  one's  ear ;  '  that's  a  leopard  where  you  killed  the 
waterbuck  yesterday.'  'Let's  go  and  see,'  we  reply, 
determined  to  let  no  sign  of  '  nerves '  appear,  and  out 
across  the  moonlit  veld  we  move.  There,  sure  enough, 
are  ghostly  shadows  retreating  and  reappearing  from  out 
the  pall.  These  are  scouting  jackals  and  hyenas;  and 
just  beyond  we  see,  glistening  in  the  moon-rays,  the 
white  vertebrae  and  ribs  of  the  waterbuck — all  minor 
anatomical  items  already  devoured  or  carried  off. 

"  Slowly  pass  those  long  dark  hours  while  we  explore 
mile  after  mile  of  the  lake-shore,  examine  with  night- 
glasses  bay  after  bay  and  infinity  of  calm  moon-lit 
waters.  Now  it  is  time  to  make  for  our  appointed  posts 
ere  the  sun  discovers  us.  One  of  us  takes  position  on  a 
reed-clad  promontory,  the  other  on  some  rocks  a  mile 
beyond. 

"  From  my  covert  amidst  sedge  and  flag,  a  typical 
African  scene  unfolds  as  the  sun  dispels  the  mists  and 
mirages  of  the  morn.  First,  two  solitary  snipes  alight 
on  a  rocky  islet  close  in  front,  stow  their  long  bills 
along  their  backs,  and  go  to  sleep ;  a  shoveler-drake, 
with  lustrous  green  head,  prods  the  shore  with  ungainly 
beak ;  then  a  pair  of  African  mallards  [Anas  undulata) 
alight  alongside  the  unnoticing  snipes,  preen  for  a 
minute,  and  themselves  go  to  sleep.  The  drake's  near 
foot  constantly  slips  over  the  narrow  ledge.  This  for 
some  time  he  refuses  to  notice,  but  can't   stand   the 


148 


ON   SAFARI 


discomfort  for  ever.  Wliy  does  lie  not  move  an  inch 
inland  ?  No,  that  is  not  his  way ;  so  the  pair  depart 
to  seek  more  convenient  cjuarters  elsewhere.  Mean- 
while, a  score  of  long-legged  stilts  have  arrived.  These 
are  not  somnolent,  but  set  to  work  busily  in  search  of 
breakfast,  wading  and  dabbling  among  the  floating 
water-weeds. 

"  Far  away  beyond,  on  the  open  water,  the  mirage  has 
hitherto  distorted  every  o])ject.  I  have  been  watching 
some  great  white  things  that  I  thought  were  swans,  and 
was  wondering  how  they  got  here.     Now,  as  the  sunlight 


FLAMINGOES   FLIGHTIXG. 


strengthens,  I  see  they  are  pelicans  asleep  on  a  shallow, 
and  there  is  a  line  of  flamingoes  beyond.  Presently  a 
rushing  of  water  sets  me  alert,  and  a  hippo  cow  swims 
rapidly  past  not  twenty  yards  away,  with  her  toto 
easily  keeping  pace.  I  do  not  shoot,  and  they  disappear 
round  the  point  quite  unconscious  of  the  danger  they 
have  just  incurred.  A  family  party  of  five — one  huge 
bull,  with  two  cows  and  two  totos — lie  basking  near  a  low 
rocky  islet  200  yards  out.  For  two  hours  I  watched 
them,  but  they  came  no  nearer.  Then  shots  resound 
from  beyond  the  point,  so  we  arise,  stretch,  and  go  on 

to  find  A watching  a  hippo  bull  apparently  in  the 

throes  of  its  death-flurry." 

While  encamped  here,  on  the  Karriendoos,  one  of 


ELMENTEITA   IN   FEBRUARY  149 

our  porters,  a  N'yuniwezi  named  Ibrahim,  died  rather 
suddenly.  The  apparent  cause  was  inflammation  of  the 
throat,  rendering  him  speechless,  nor  had  we  either  the 
knowledge  or  the  means  to  alleviate  it.  The  first  in- 
timation was  brouoiit  us  durino-  the  afternoon  :  we  tried 
such  simple  remedies  as  we  had,  but  at  seven  o'clock, 
just  as  we  were  sitting  down  to  dinner,  w^ord  was  sent 
in  that  the  poor  fellow  w-as  dead. 

He  was  buried  at  dawn  outside  the  camp,  the  grave 
being  five  feet  deep  and  the  body,  wa^apt  in  his  blanket, 
placed  sidew^ays  in  a  narrow^er  trench  dug  some  eighteen 
inches  deeper.  This  the  men  covered  with  piles  of  thorns 
and  brushwood  before  filling  in  the  earth,  the  wdiole 
being  finally  heaped  over  with  stones.  That  night 
hyenas  and  jackals  kept  up  an  unearthly  concert  aU 
around  the  camp,  but  the  grave  remained  intact  in  the 


mornmo-. 


A  few  days  later,  having  in  the  meantime  been 
obliged,  by  an  attack  of  fever,  as  below  mentioned,  to 
abandon  our  intended  expedition  to  Laikipia,  we  repassed 
the  spot  and  found  that  poor  Ibrahim's  remains  had 
been  dug  out  by  hyenas. 

An  incident  in  this  connection  illustrates  wdiat  w^atchful 
care  the  Colonial  Government  exercises  over  the  rights 
and  interests  of  our  black  fellow-subjects.  Months  after- 
wards, while  paying-oflf  our  safari  at  Mombasa,  I  had 
entered,  on  the  official  discharge  form,  this  man  as 
"dead";  another  as  "missing — believed  to  be  dead." 
Objection,  however,  w^as  taken,  and  further  explanation 
required,  especially  the  precise  dates,  lest  some  balance 
of  w^aoes  mio'ht  remain  due  to  their  executors.  Now 
the  contingency  of  African  savages  possessing  such 
modern  refinements  as  "  executors  "  had  certainly  not 
occurred  to  me,  and  the  suggestion  almost  provoked  a 
sense  of  the  ludicrous.  The  grim  picture  opposite  gives, 
I  fear,  a  more  practical  view^  of  those  functionaries. 
These  trustees  may  truly  be  said  to  be  "  dealing  wath 
the  w^hole  estate,"  since  on  totting  up  accounts  it 
appeared  that  poor  Ibrahim  had  not  run  ofi"  his  advance- 


150 


ON   SAFARI 


pay.     Hence,  presumaLly,  some  small  balance  stood  to 
my  credit.     But  I  did  not  apply  to  the  executors. 

On  February  17,  we  struck  camp  and  set  out  on  the 
long  march  to  Laikipia,  a  Masai  guide  having  been  sent 
by  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Hobley.  But  that  expedition 
was  not  destined  to  be  accomplished.  We  ran  into  a 
period  of  tropical  thunderstorms.  Intense  sun-heat  all 
the  morning  (temj^erature  98  degrees  in  our  tents)  would 
be  followed  by  a  thunder-burst,  with  diluvial  rains  and  a 
sudden  fall  of  20  degrees  within  an  hour.  This  brought 
on  an  attack  of  my  old  enemy — fever,  followed  by 
dysentery.  There  was  no  alternative  but  to  abandon 
the  venture  and  fall  back  upon  the  railway. 


STERNUM    OF    OSTRICH. 

Sliowing  eutire  absence  of  a  keel. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

ELEPHANTS 

Passing  over  tedious  days  spent  fighting  with  fever 
at  Nakuru — days  while  tropical  thunderstorms  raged 
every  afternoon  and  i  was  held  up  a  prisoner  in  my  tent 
— an  incident  occurred  that  altered  all  our  plans. 
There  arrived  direct  news  of  elephants — news  on  which 
we  could  rely ;  the  elephants,  moreover,  were  close  at 
hand.  Within  five-and-twenty  miles  a  big  herd  had 
been  seen  on  the  Molo  River  to  the  westward,  and  were 
reported  to  be  moving  across  us  towards  the  north- 
east. 

Now  throughout  that  season  of  1905-6  herds  of 
elephants  had  been  rambling  here  and  there  within  our 
British  territories,  and  their  presence  at  various  points 
had  already  been  reported  to  us.  Hitherto,  however,  all 
such  reports  had  been  more  or  less  indefinite,  and  in 
every  case  the  distance  considerable.  Elephants,  we 
knew,  move  fifty  miles  in  a  night — our  own  extreme 
mobility  being  twenty  ;  hence  all  seductions  had  hither- 
to been  dechned.  But  here  the  case  was  wholly  altered. 
If  the  herd  now  reported — said  to  number  forty — held 
the  line  of  march  stated,  we  lay  almost  on  their  flank, 
and,  by  a  smart  move,  might  cut  them  out. 

It  was  a  clear  chance — the  chance,  maybe,  of  a  lifetime 
— and  we  seized  it.  Though  personally  ill  and  weak,  we 
were  into  the  saddle  and  away  by  daybreak.  Our  plan 
of  campaign  was  to  march  direct  on  Lake  Solai,  a  marshy 
vlei  lying  some  twenty-five  miles  to  the  north-east  among 
the  outliers  of  the  Laikipia  Range,  and  which  was  known 
to  be  an  occasional  resort  of  elephants — in  the  hope  either 

151 


152  ON   SAFARI 

to  cut  tlieir  spoor  on  route,  or,  alternatively,  to  find  the 
herd  at  Solai  itself. 

After  rounding  the  crater  of  Meningai,  our  course 
lay  up  that  broad  upland  valley  we  had  already 
traversed  in  1904  (p.  48),  and  leaving  the  safari  to 
pursue  the  direct  path,  we  deflected  with  our  gun-bearers 
into  the  wooded  foothills  of  the  northern  slopes.  There- 
in, during  that  morning,  we  encountered  evidence  of 
elephants  on  a  scale  the  like  of  which  we  have  not  seen 
before  or  since.  For  miles  this  forest  was  absolutely 
devastated — wrecked  :  huge  trees  overthrown,  one  upon 
another,  their  limbs  rent  asunder  ;  cedars  and  cypress, 
mimosas  and  acacias  torn  to  shreds,  the  tall  grass 
trampled  flat ;  while,  amidst  the  ruin,  chewed  branches 
and  disgorged  masses  of  bark  and  fibre  everywhere 
littered  the  ground.  We  could  plainly  distinguish  places 
where  several  elephants  had  worked  collectively  to  over- 
throw some  extra  strong  tree.  This  destruction  had  no 
relation  to  the  herd  of  elejDhants  we  were  now  in  search 
of ;  our  men  reckoned  it  dated  a  week  previously,  and 
our  own  judgment  confirmed  that  view ;  yet  we  enjoyed 
the  excitement  of  pushing  forward  through  the  wreck, 
picturing  to  ourselves  a  vast  pachyderm  at  every  forest- 
opening  !  We  also  struck  quite  fresh  spoor  of  bufl"alo, 
though  we  saw  nothing  except  waterbuck.  In  the  belt 
of  brushwood  borderino;  the  veld  below  East-African 
Bohor  reedbuck  were  now  numerous,  though  none  were 

seen  here  in  1904,  and  W shot  a  couple.     We  also 

killed  to-day  a  puff"-adder. 

This  country,  eighteen  months  previously,  had  been 
full  of  Masai  with  their  cattle,  sheep  and  donkeys.  Now 
these  savages  had  been  "removed"  into  the  Laikipia 
Eeserve  ;  their  kraals  were  burnt  and  deserted,  while 
elephant,  buffalo  and  other  game  had  reappeared. 

At  midday  we  halted  on  the  Alabanyata  River, 
intending  to  push  on  at  4  p.m.  ;  but  to  our  unspeakable 
vexation,  the  usual  thunderstorm  burst,  torrential  rains 
obliged  us  to  encamp,  and  forbade  all  hope  of  further 
advance   that   night.     A   second    shock   followed.     As 


ELEPHANTS 


153 


dusk  fell,  we  observed  tlirough  the  pouring  rain  another 
safari  approaching  up  our  valley.  They  presently 
encamped  a  mile  or  so  below  us.  This  signifiecl  nothing 
less  than  a  serious  crisis.  After  deep  consultation  held, 
we  decided  that,  being  ahead,  we  would  maintain  that 
position  at  all  costs,  and  accordingly  gave  orders  to 
mask  tents,  extinguish  all  fires,  and  to  strike  camp  at 
3  a.m.  next  mornino-. 


PUFF-ADDER. 

Length  4  ft.  ;  thickset  and  shiggish,  with  flat  head  like  a  toad  ;  but  its 

bite  is  deadly. 

February  23. — This  eventful  day  began  with  a  two- 
hours'  scramble  in  black  darkness  through  pathless  forest 
and  jungle,  and  shortly  after  dawn  we  struck  the  spoor 

of  a  solitary  buffalo  bull.     This  being  quite  fresh,  W 

followed  it  towards  the  right,  taking  my  tracker,  Kenana 
(who  alone  knew  the  route  to  Solai),  with  him.  The 
safari  being  on  lower  ground  to  the  left,  I  rode  on  alone 
with  my  two  gun-bearers,  Mabruki  and  Salim,  and  a 
syce.  Suddenly  there  recommenced  that  terrible 
tropical  down^DOur,  driving  in  our  faces  on  the  bleakest 
and  most  bitter  gale  I  ever  remember  in  Africa.  It  was 
worthy  of  the  Hardanger  Vidden  at  its  worst,  and  in 
half-an-hour  I  was  seized  with  a  fresh  attack  of  fever. 


154  ON   SAFARI 

Being  all  separate,  without  means  of  communication, 
aggravated  the  miseries  of  the  moment ;  spirits  fell 
below  zero,  and  the  whole  venture,  in  my  then  state, 
now  appeared  sheer  madness — suicidal.  Hope  was  all 
but  dead  within  my  breast  when  Farra,  the  syce, 
stopped  and,  pointing  through  the  viewless  torrent 
along  the  hillside,  whispered,  "  Kifaru  !  "  (rhinoceros). 
The  excitement  of  that  word  effected  wonders,  renewing 
life  and  hope  and  pulling  me  together.  After  a  short 
stalk  I  descried  a  vast  bulky  form,  half  hidden  amid  thorn- 
scrub  on  the  slope  above.  The  head  was  not  in  sight ;  but 
indeed  through  that  driving  mist  and  deluge  all  details 
were  invisible — one  could  scarce  see  to  distinguish  the 
foresight,  and  the  ball  struck  very  low,  behind  the 
fore-leg.  The  rhino  whipped  round  and  vanished  as  a 
rabbit  might,  giving  no  chance  for  a  second  shot,  but 
after  galloping  100  yards  up-hill  fell  over,  squealing,  and 
was  dying  ere  we  reached  the  spot.  This  was  a  female, 
with  only  poor  horns,  though  those  details  could  not 
before  be  seen.  Both  lungs  were  penetrated.  These 
organs,  in  a  rhino,  extend  low  down. 

An  hour  later,  while  trudging  along  in  flood-water 
that  surged  ankle-deep  down  the  valley-floor,  we 
descried  three  men  approaching  from  the  opposite 
direction.  They  proved  to  be  my  brother,  with  Ali  and 
Kenana,  on  their  way  to  Solai.  But  we  also  thought 
we  were  proceeding  thither  !  Obviously  one  party  or 
the  other  was  hopelessly  astray.  But  for  that  purely 
fortuitous  tumble-together  I  should  inevitably  have  con- 
tinued walking  on  in  the  wrong  direction,  till  finally 
"  benighted  " — soaked,  ill,  without  food  or  shelter ;  it 
was  a  narrow  escape.  Such  are  the  risks  one  must  take 
in  wild  lands. 

It  was  nearly  noon  when  the  rocky  valley  we  were 
traversing  opened  out  into  a  broad  basin,  with  a  shallow 
reed-embowered  lake  in  its  midst,  the  whole  encircled  by 
stony  mountains ;  and  we  saw,  sheltered  by  a  cleft  in 
the  western  escarpment,  our  white  tents  established  at 
Solai. 


ELEPHANTS  155 

Thankfully  we  ordered  lunch  to  be  ready  in  half-an- 
hour,  each  meanwhile  retiring  to  his  tent  for  a  warm 
bath  and  change.  But  during  that  half-hour  the  crisis 
arrived.  Within  ten  minutes,  an  excited  black  head 
had  pushed  itself  through  the  flap  of  my  tent, 
exclaiming  those  magic  words — "  Tembo  !  tembo  !  !  " 
(elephants). 

Then  from  our  tent-doors  we  saw  a  memorable 
spectacle — across  that  hill-girt  plain  beyond,  hard  by 
the  gleaming  marsh,  and  not  800  yards  away,  marched 
a  column  of  forty  elephants. 

Hastily  we  pulled  on  again  the  soaking  raiment,  and 
within  a  few  minutes  were  away.  The  elephants  slowly 
filed  across  the  mouth  of  our  valley ;  then,  wheeling 
towards  us,  advanced  straight  up  its  centre.  AVithin  ten 
minutes  we  were  only  separated  from  them  by  the  width 
of  a  marsh,  200  yards  across,  which,  overgrown  with 
rank  green  flags,  ran  down  the  centre  of  the  strath. 
Both  my  men  proved  so  excitable  that  I  pulled  them 
down  and  placed  Ali  Yama  in  sole  charge.  He  was  cool- 
ness itself,  and  made  a  masterly  approach.  We  presently 
took  cover  behind  a  single  low  bush  from  the  middle  of 
which  grew  a  mimosa-thorn,  and  some  fifty  yards  from 
the  green  flags.  A  steady  breeze  blew  from  the  vlei 
straight  up  the  valley,  and  remained  unchanged  through- 
out the  entire  operation. 

Upon  arriving  exactly  opposite  this  point  where  we 
lay  watching  them,  the  column  of  elephants  came  to  a 
halt,  and  for  several  minutes  stood  there,  evidently  in 
consultation — it  hardly  seems  an  exaggeration  to  say  in 
"  conversation."  Then  they  resumed  their  course,  hold- 
ing up  the  valley  ;  while  we  followed,  keeping  level  with 
them,  on  our  side  the  marsh.  Presently  they  halted 
again,  and,  after  further  conversation,  apparently 
decided  that  the  former  spot  was,  after  all,  the  more 
favourable  to  efli"ect  their  passage  of  the  marsh  ;  for, 
wheeling  on  their  tracks,  they  marched  back  thither  in 
column,  and  presently,  with  great  deliberation,  com- 
menced to  cross  to  our  side.      We  had  meanwhile,  for 


156 


ON   SAFARI 


lialf-an-liour,  enjoyed  magnificent  views  of  the  whole 
troop,  and  had  made  out  at  least  two  first-rate  bnlls, 
one  in  particular  riveting  my  attention  by  the  splendid 


SKETCH-MAP    OF   SOLAI,    ILLUSTKATING   OPEKATION   'WITH    ELEPHANTS. 

ivory  he  carried,  and  which  he  was  wont  to  display  to 
perfection  by  jaunty  tosses  of  his  head. 

The  point  they  had  selected  for  their  passage 
possessed  the  advantage — we  noticed  this  afterwards — 
of  a  half-dry  islet  midway  across. 

The   huge   animals    took    the    treacherous    bog    in 


ELEPHANTS  157 

column  of  six  abreast,  tlie  big  bulls  in  the  van,  and 
their  line  extending  100  yards  to  the  rear.  Surely  a 
more  stirring  spectacle  in  wild-life  was  never  presented 
to  human  eye  ! 

We  had,  of  course,  regained  our  former  position, 
and  now  sat  squatting  behind  that  tiny  bush  within  a 
few  yards  of  the  nearest  flags.  But  with  that  wondrous 
scene  enacting  before  our  eyes  no  thought  was  spared  to 
considerations  either  of  tactics  or  of  safety. 

Obviously  the  changed  course  of  the  elephants,  now 
advancing  directly  upon  us,  had  wholly  altered  the 
strategical  situation.  Beyond  a  doubt  we  should,  at 
this  moment,  have  retreated  to  some  point  at  which  we 
should  still  retain  control  of  operations.  By  continuing 
to  hold  a  false  position,  we  presently  lost  all  freedom 
of  action  and  left  ourselves  to  be  enveloped,  within  a 
few  more  seconds,  between  the  masses  of  advancing 
monsters. 

Lucky  it  was  that  the  bulls  came  first.  Had  the 
prohibited  sex  headed  the  column,  it  is  neither  pleasant 
nor  useful  to  speculate  on  what  might  have  resulted. 

So  directly  upon  our  position  did  the  unconscious 
elephants  advance  that,  upon  landing,  the  head  of  their 
column  had  actually  to  divide  so  as  to  pass  our  bush, 
some  on  either  side.  Within  a  few  seconds  the  leading 
bull  on  my  side  (the  left)  towered  over  our  low  shelter 
not  twenty  yards  ahead.  But  this  first-comer  was  not 
the  real  monarch  of  the  troop.  His  tusks,  though  long, 
were  thin  and  ill-formed,  crossing  in  front.  The 
monster  tusker  on  which  my  heart  was  set,  I  knew, 
came  second.  It  had  been  agreed  that  I  should  fire  the 
first  shot ;  but  at  that  critical  moment,  while  I  waited 
an  instant  longer  to  get  a  clear  sight  of  No.  2,  my 
wretched  gun-bearer,  Mabruki,  giving  way  to  sheer 
"  funk,"  fired  my  second  gun  close  past  my  ear — 
deafening  and,  for  a  time,  half- stupefying  me.  At  the 
shot,  the  two  great  bulls  on  my  front  (the  nearer  being 
then  fourteen  yards  off")  stopped  short,  raising  their  heads 
and  spreading  their  huge  ears  laterally  as  a  barcj^ue  sets 


158  ON   SAFAEI 

stiinsails.  For  six  or  eiglit  pregnant  seconds  tliey  stood 
still,  looking  around  them  with  majestic  deliberation,  and 
then  .   .   .  slowly  turned  away. 

They  had  not  seen  us,  simply  because  we  were  so 
near.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  elephants,  all  this  time, 
had  been  looking  far  beyond  us — over  our  heads. 

By  inspiration,  during  that  crucial  interval,  we  all 
lay  motionless.  Then,  so  soon  as  the  elephants  wheeled 
to  retire,  1  placed  my  tw^o  barrels  (■450,  solid)  into  the  big 
tusker  at  twenty-five  yards,  aiming  rather  low  behind  the 
shoulder.  He  staggered  and  stopped,  receiving  a  third 
ball  a  trifle  higher  up,  wdien  he  moved  slowly  towards 
the  marsh.  Seeing  that  he  had  enough,  I  placed  two 
more  balls  in  the  ribs  of  the  next  biggest  bull,  then 
moving  three-quarters  off,  when  the  two  retired  by 
themselves  to  the  left,  presently  entering  the  reeds 
alone,  beyond  the  main  herd. 

My  brother  meanwhile  had  devoted  all  attention  to 
the  other  big  bull,  the  second  best  in  the  company, 
w^hich  had  passed  on  his  side  of  the  bush,  following  the 
lead  of  two  cows.  This  grand  elephant  I  now  saw  sink 
stern-first  among  the  green  flags,  remaining  upright, 
dead. 

The  main  mass  of  elephants  were  now  retiring  most 
deliberately  through  the  bog,  on  the  same  track  by 
which  they  had  advanced ;  but  my  two  stricken  bulls, 
straggling  to  the  left,  lagged  in  the  rear  of  the  herd. 
We  followed  on  through  the  flags  in  pursuit,  when  a 
badly-hit  cow  elephant,  bleeding  at  mouth  and  trunk, 
turned  out  on  our  right,  blocking  our  advance.     She 

stood,  full  broadside,  in  front  of  W ,  wdio  dropped 

her  with  a  single  shot  in  the  temple.  Kunning  past 
her,  I  presently  overtook  my  big  bull  standing  still, 
stern  on,  in  the  marsh.  On  finding  himself  pursued,  he 
turned  on  us  with  cocked  ears  and  upraised  trunk ;  but 
in  that  treacherous  bog  he  was  slow  in  coming  round, 
giving  time  for  a  careful  aim  at  about  seventy  yards. 
The  ball  struck  close  behind  the  orifice  of  the  ear,  and 
the  champion  of  the  troop  w^as  mine.     His  very  death 


5.        3>,5)>  1 


i\ 


ELEPHANTS 


159 


was  majestic.  He  seemed  to  rise  up  forward,  the  curved 
trunk  held  high  in  the  air;  then,  with  slow  sidelong 
motion,  gently  collapsed  stern-first  till  he  finally  fell 
over,  lying  like  a  dark-red  mountain  towering  over  the 
green  Hags. 

Hurrying  forward  past  him — with  hardly  time  even 
to  glance  at  those  glorious  tusks — and  running  easily  on 


'^SMvnf^ 


"turned  on  rs  with  cocked  eaes  and  upraised  trunk. 

a  broad  causeway  of  broken-down  reeds  (while  the 
elephants  plunged  and  struggled  in  bog),  we  soon  over- 
hauled the  second  wounded  bull  He  also,  at  seventy 
yards,  turned  on  us  with  cocked  ears  and  a  shrill  shriek. 
"Shoot,"  said  Ali,  "he's  going  to  charge."  But  his 
end  was  at  hand.  A  *450  solid  knocked  him  backwards 
over — passing  through  the  hollow  top  of  one  tusk  where 
embedded  in  the  skull  (near  the  eye).     He  struggled  to 

regain  his  feet  when  W gave  him  a  finisher,  and  he 

fell  with  his  face  to  the  foe. 

Four    enormous    elephants    now    lay    dead — three 
behind  us,  the  fourth  fifty  yards  ahead.     Of  this  last, 


160 


ON    SAFARI 


however,  we  found  it  impossible  to  take  possession, 
owing  to  the  aggressive  attitude  and  dangerous  temper 
now  displayed  by  the  main  troop,  Avhicli  had  ranged  up 
in  solid  phalanx  just  beyond  the  fallen  bull.  No  sooner 
had  they  regained  firm  ground  than  the  whole  demean- 
our of  the  elephants  changed.  Instead  of  retreating 
passively,  they  now  faced  about  in  open  defiance,  formed 
in  battle  array,  ready  to  take  the  offensive.  With  trunks 
upraised  on  ever}^  side,  ears  cocked,   and  a  chorus  of 


COLLAPSED   STEKX-FIKST 


explosive  grunts  varied  by  shrieks  of  rage,  there  was  no 
mistaking  their  temper  ;  and  after  watching  the  magni- 
ficent scene  for  a  few  moments,  we  decided  to  retire, 
abandoning  our  last  prize  to  the  enemy.  There  were, 
in  fact,  no  more  good  bulls  among  the  herd  ;  so  we 
retreated  campwards — to  lunch,  passing  by  the  three 
huge  carcasses  lying  like  islands  among  the  reeds. 

The  affair  had  occupied  probably  no  more  than  a 
hundred  crowded  minutes — many  of  these  as  full  as 
whole  epochs  of  routine  existence  ;  and  the  above  pages 
describe  the  main  facts  as  such  can  be  put  down  on 


:>         3     5        >     3     >         t 
■>  J5,    ''3       5 

3   >  5  J       1  1 


»  1  J»i>Oj  "3),0  >i>3 


ELEPHANTS 


161 


paper.  The  sensatious  aroused,  though  they  may  be 
realised  in  imagination,  cannot  be  printed  so.  Nor  can 
the  degree  of  danger  be  defined,  since  the  temperament 
and  conduct  of  elephants  differ.  No  two  need  be  alike. 
These,  for  example,  retired  at  the  crucial  moment ;  but 
in  my  own  former  experience  on  Lake  Baringo  (p.  68), 
a  "  lone  bull "'  charged  at  once  on  scent  alone,  though 
otherwise  unmolested ;  and  instantly  repeated  the 
charge  a  second  time,  after  being  wounded.  Here 
again,  at  Solai,  only  a  few  weeks  before,  a  fatal  accident 


r-,*^i^^1i 


■\t^ 


■■^fi'''^//" 


had  occurred.^  Beyond  all  doubt  we  enjoyed  unusual 
good  fortune  in  thus  encountering  our  elephants,  not 
only  in  broad  daylight,  a  steady  breeze,  and  open 
country,  but  also  taken  at  disiidvantage  in  treacherous 
bog.  Still  there  was,  following  on  Mabruki's  insane  shot 
"into  the  brown,"  a  period  of  supreme  danger,  when 
for  some  seconds  all  our  six  lives  hung  in  the  balance. 
Had  the  elephants  then  seen  us — when  almost  under 

1  An  Englishman,  as  related  to  iis,  had  found  and  stalked  a 
single  bull  elejjhant,  unaware  of  the  presence  of  six  others  among 
bush  on  his  flank,  and  to  whose  view  he  had  thus  unwittingly 
exposed  himself  during  the  stalk.  On  his  firing  at  the  bull,  one  of 
these  six  at  once  charged;  and,  the  repeating  mechanism  of  his  rifle 
jamming,  the  poor  fellow  was  straightway  caught  and  killed. 


162  ON   SAFARI 

their  trunks — nothing  could  have  saved  us.  Picking 
out  three  bulls  from  among  forty  beasts  necessarily 
involves  risk. 

The  day's  bag  thus  totalled — 
4  elephants, 
1  rhinoceros. 
Estimated    dead- weight,    25    tons ;    actual    weight    of 
ivory  brought  into  camp,  300  lbs. ;    value,  say,  £200 
sterling  ! 

That  afternoon  and  the  following  day  we  spent  in 
measuring  and  photographing  our  prizes.  Of  the  four 
elephants,  one  only  admitted  of  accurate  dimensions 
being  taken.  This,  by  good  luck,  w^as  the  biggest  bull 
of  all,  which  lay  fully  extended  on  his  broadside — the 
other  three  having  fallen  either  upright  or  in  such 
positions  in  the  bog,  with  legs  bent  or  buried  beneath 
them,  that  measurements  were  impossible. 

The  following  figures,  taken  conjointly  with  the 
photographs  herein  reproduced,  should  serve  to  give 
some  idea  of  the  size  of  this  giant  of  the  modern  world. 


Elephakt  Bull. 

ft. 

in. 

Height  in  straight  line  (shoulder) 

11 

1 

Length,  tip  trunk  to  tip  tail 

24 

3 

Girth  at  shoulder 

14 

10 

„      of  foreleg  at  upper  part 

5 

8 

„       „  forefoot. 

4 

10 

Ear,  horizontal  width  . 

3 

8h 

,,     vertical  height     . 

5 

H 

It  should  be  added  that  an  elephant  measuring 
11  ft.  at  withers  will  probably  stand  12  ft.,  or  possibly 
13,  in  front,  when  aroused  and  with  head  erect,  as  those 
two  stood  before  me  to-day.  Their  huge  ears,  in  ad- 
dition, each  spreading  out  near  4  ft.  laterally,  give  the 
elephant  an  apparent  width  of,  say,  10  ft.,  by  a  height 
of  13  ft.  !     See  frontispiece. 

The  tusks  of  my  monster  bull  were  a  beautifully 
symmetrical  pair,  the  longer  measuring  7  ft.  1  in.,  by 
17|-  ins.   in  girth.     They  weighed    137    lbs.  the    pair. 


>         J      J         >      J     5  -, 

■>         >      >%    '      >       J      J 

'   >  '  1       1  )  J 


->  J      '   5 


'    >  1    ,   )   .      1    J 


>  3  JS«2J) 


BULL   ELEPHANT   EHiHT   YAIIDS   LONG. 


Walter's  big  bull. 


ELEPHANTS  163 

Length  exposed  from  gum,  4  ft  7  ins.  ;  widest  distance 
apart  in  curve,  2  ft.  6  ins. ;  between  tips,  2  ft.  2  ins. 

The  longer  tusk  of  my  brother's  big  bull  measured 
6  ft.  2h  ins.,  by  16  ins.  girth.  This  pair  weighed  93  lbs., 
one  tusk  being  broken  at  the  tip ;  those  of  the  third 
bull  44  lbs.,  and  of  the  cow  28  lbs.  :  total,  302  lbs. 

With  regard  to  the  latter,  neither  my  brother  nor 
I  had  shot  at  an  animal  of  the  wrong  sex,  the  bull- 
elephants  being  easily  distinguished  from  cows,  even  as 
seen  from  astern,  by  their  superior  height — towering  an 
apparent  fourth  over  the  females.  This  unfortunate 
animal  had  undoubtedly  received  her  wound  in  the  first 
instance  from  Mabruki's  reckless  shot.  Grievous  to 
add,  she  was  followed  by  a  well-grown  calf,  about 
4  ft.  high.  This  we  endeavoured  to  capture,  but  the 
toto  proved  altogether  too  big.  On  our  approach,  the 
determined  little  beastie  (it  must  have  w^eighed  half-a- 
ton  I)  came  on  in  most  savage  style,  cocking  his  ears 
and  screaming,  till  we  were  fain  to  leave  him  alone. 
We  heard  him  calling  during  that  night,  but  by 
morning  he  had  gone. 

Immediately  the  shooting  was  over,  I  discharged 
Mabruki  on  the  spot,  taking  the  rifle  from  him  and 
landing  him  a  brace,  right-and-left,  on  his  snub  nose  to 
drive  the  lesson  home.  Next  time  I  saw  him,  six  weeks 
later,  he  was  working  in  a  docker-gang  on  the  wharves 
of  Mombasa.  The  punishment  seemed  severe — the  fall 
from  gun-bearer  at  twenty-five  rupees  a  month  to  labourer 
at  six — and  for  a  moment  I  relented  ;  but  second  thoughts 
clinched  the  matter.  Mabruki  was  totally  disqualified 
to  act  as  gun-bearer,  and  should  never  have  been  rated 
as  such.  Already,  within  two  months,  his  want  of 
nerve  and  self-control  had  twice  placed  ns  in  jeopardy, 
and  he  should  not  have  the  chance  of  doing  the  same 
to  others.  Nor  should  East-African  shooting-agents 
"  sign  on "  gun-bearers  unless  they  have  reasonable 
certainty  in  believing  such  to  be  safe  and  reliable  men. 

The  last  view  we  had  of  our  elephants,  they 
were  slowly  retiring  northwards  through  the  scattered 


164 


ON   SAFAEI 


trees  that  fringed  the  drier  ground,  and  with  the 
same  majestic  deliberation  and  coolness  that  they  had 
displayed  throughout  the  encounter ;  while  beyond  them, 
above  the  tall  green  flags  of  the  vJei,  we  descried   the 


ADIEU 


backs  of  a  second  herd  slowly  moving  towards  the  east. 
We  regretted  afterwards  that  we  neglected  to  take  any 
steps  to  ascertain  which  way  they  finally  went,  for 
heavy  rains  soon  obliterated  the  trail.  But  in  that 
moment  of  supreme  triumph  we  were  perhaps  too  ex- 
hilarated— in  a  state  of  mental  intoxication  after  those 
deep  draughts  of  excitement  and  success. 


CHAPTER   XIV 

HUNTING   ON   LAKE   SOLAI 

CHANCE    OR    SKILL  ? 

The  operation  of  extracting  the  tusks  from  the 
massi-ve  rocky  cranium  of  an  elephant  can  be  effected 
in  two  ways.  The  more  expeditious  method  is  to  hew 
them  out  with  hatchets ;  but  this  necessarily  involves 
some  injury  to  the  ivory,  one-third  of  which  is  embedded 
in  the  bone.  By  allowing  three  or  four  days  to  elapse, 
decomposition  will  have  loosened  the  hold  and  the  teeth 
can  then  be  drawn  out. 

Being  in  no  special  hurry,  we  elected  to  await  the 
latter  result,  the  more  readily  as  we  found  ourselves  in 
a  lovely  situation,  commanding  within  reach  of  our 
camp  both  w^oocl  and  water,  mountain,  marsh  and  plain. 
We  decided  to  spend  a  week  exploring  our  environment 
and  its  wild  life. 

This  decision  caused  general  joy  among  our  men, 
who  were  gorging  on  elephant-meat.  Strangely,  they 
preferred  the  internals,  and  had  driven  a  "  drift "  like 
a  mine-shaft  through  the  ribs,  thereby  entering  bodily 
into  the  interior  and  excavatino-  the  coveted  titbits. 
We  had  thought  of  experimenting  on  the  trunk  our- 
selves, till  informed  that  only  after  forty-eight  hours' 
cooking  would  the  meat  be  soft  enough  to  cut  with  a 
hatchet.  We  contented  ourselves  with  the  undercut  of 
hartebeest  and  cutlets  from  some  delicious  little  stein- 
bucks  and  oribi  that  W had  shot  on  the  hill. 

On  one  of  these  days  I  was  specially  pleased  to 
secure  a  fine  cock  ostrich,  breaking  the  thigh  at  200 
yards — thus  killing  the  biggest  bird  on  earth  and  the 

165 


166  ON   SAFAKI 

l)iofp-est   beast    witliiii    a  short   league    of   each    other  ! 
We  also  observed  ostrich-poults,  half-grown. 

Another  clay,  however,  was  memorable  for  shattering 
to  atoms  any  complacent  sentiment  of  self-assurance  that 
success  only  follows  on  deserts,  or  that  achievements  are 
always  proportioned  to  skill,  perseverance,  or  other 
personal  equalities.  Those  who  exclude  the  element  of 
chance  from  their  creed  may  be  interested  in  some  notes 
from  that  day's  experience.  So  far  as  the  writer  can 
remember,  they  stand  unique  in  over  forty  years 
of  shooting-life. 

It  was  a  dull  misty  dawn,  with  a  wet  haze  hanging- 
over  the  marshes,  wdience  resounded  the  sonorous  cries 
of  the  great  Kavirondo  cranes,  while  all  around  our  camp 
the  bush  was  alive  with  the  matutinal  chorus  of  doves  and 
francolins  and  the  cackle  of  guinea-fowl  in  the  thorny- 
scrub  abov^e.  Telling  my  brother  I  intended  to  shoot  an 
eland,  I  set  out  w^ith  my  gun-bearers  in  the  half-light. 
We  ascended  the  hill  behind  our  camp,  and  were  walking 
in  single  file  towards  the  west  when  I  espied  close  ahead 
a  waterbuck  bull  (de/assa)  feeding  in  an  open  glade 
surrounded  by  bush.  Strnngoly,  with  three  pairs  of 
keen  eyes  on  the  look-out,  none  had  detected  him  in 
time  ;  for  before  the  rifle  could  be  handed,  the  big  buck, 
though  unalarracd,  had  moved  forward  out  of  sight,  still 
feeding.  Eventually  the  shot  was  one  of  those,  in  bush, 
at  "  horns  only,"  with  a  conjectural  body  beneath  that 
may  be  standing  in  any  conceivable  relation  thereto  ; 
the  distance  also  was  much  greater,  and  the  result  a  miss. 
The  direction  of  the  spoor  coinciding  with  our  intended 
route,  we  followed  on  ;  but  presently  coming  on  the  crest 
of  a  sudden  escarpment,  sighted  four  hartebeest  on  the 
plain  far  below.  After  a  detour,  I  got  a  steady  lying  shot, 
and  the  best  of  the  four  (300  yards  away  and  200  feet 
below)  dropped  and  lay  motionless.  It  cost  us  half-an- 
hour  finding  a  way  down  those  crags,  and  then  .  .  .  that 
l)ull  was  gone !  Neither  spoor  nor  blood  served  us  on 
such  ground — half  rock,  half  bush  ;  and  we  saw  him  no 
more.     Holding  our  course,  we  shortly  viewed  what  we 


1     )   i  ,  >   J    J   3  '   ^   , 

"    '   °1   1     3    >         »  ,  ■>   ' 


■•   '  ',   >   ,  >   '   >  ,  > 
'    1  »     )   1  )   '  , 


W AND  DEAD  ELEPHANT, 


.V.  E.  C,  Photo.,  at  Hov.xly. 


ELEPHANT  S  EAR, 


HUNTING   ON   LAKE   SOLAI 


167 


judged  to  be  the  missed  waterbuck,  a  mile  ahead  and  on 
the  right  shoulder  of  a  gentle  pass,  or  depression  in  the 
foreground,  which  at  that  point  dipped  sharply  away  to 
lower  levels  beyond. 

On  reaching  our  marks,  where  the  view  broadened 
out  on  either  side,  w^e  could  see  nothing  of  our  water- 


../ 


:pmm 


WATERBI'CK   BULL. 


buck,  though  feeling  sure  he  was  somewhere  on  our  right 
and  not  far  away.  While  spying,  a  hartebeest  bull  with 
fine  head  showed  up  on  the  left,  and  a  shot  at  the  neck 
dropped  him — my  hope  in  thus  firing  being  to  secure 
the  supposed  waterbuck  with  the  second  barrel.  There 
ensued  a  crash  among  the  bush  on  the  right,  and  far 
away  the  expected  animal  appeared,  halting  to  gaze, 
full  broadside,  as  he  gained  the  open.  Salim  tried  to 
take  the  smaller  rifle  ("SOS)  from  me  and  handed  me  the 
•450.     His  reason  I   did  not  follow ;  for  at   the    long 


168 


ON   SAFARI 


range  (350  to  400  yards)  my  eyesiglit  liad  failed  to 
recognise  that  tliis  was  no  waterbiick  after  all,  but  a 
grand  old  eland  bull  !  The  '303  bullet  struck  with 
the  sounding  "clap"  that  usually  signifies  a  good  hit; 
the  eland  plunged  forward,  staggering  almost  to  earth, 
but  recovering,  carried  on  towards  the  plain  below.     The 


1      -     ^i4yE)'\^' i 


"^ 


:i^ 


ELAIsD   BULL. 


line  he  took,  however,  viewed  in  relation  to  the  con- 
figuration of  the  mountain-barrier  ahead,  suggested  the 
idea  that  we  might,  by  very  hard  running,  cut  him  out 
— that  is,  we  could  take  the  chord  while  he  ran  the  arc 
of  a  circle. 

There  was  not  a  moment  to  spare — not  a  second  to 
recover  our  poor  crippled  hartebeest :  a  cruel  exigency 
drove  us  to  leave  that  splendid  animal  a  prey  for 
vultures  and  hyenas. 


HUNTING   ON   LAKE   SOLAI  169 

Half-an-hour  of  the  hardest  going  and  we  had  reached 
our  point — alas  !  too  late.  The  spoor,  crossing  a  shaUow 
pool,  showed  where  the  quarry  had  passed  but  a  minute 
before,  for  on  hurrying  forward,  we  caught  one  glimpse 
of  his  bulky  form  disappearing  round  a  bluff  ahead. 

Having  heard  the  impact  of  the  ball  so  distinctly, 
and  having  two  excellent  trackers  (Salim  and  Kenana), 
I  had  every  confidence  in  recovering  this  grand  prize  ; 
a  promise  of  good  backsheesh  further  stimulated  the 
men,  and  for  three  long  hours  we  held  the  spoor  forward, 
the  trackers  backing  each  other  beautifully  on  either 
flank  at  each  slight  check.  We  were,  however,  rarely 
in  difficulty,  and  indeed  had  made  good  at  least  six 
miles  without  a  sign  of  the  stricken  beast  ahead,  nor 
had  he  once  laid  down. 

Towards  noon,  while  passing  outside  a  great  conch- 
shaped  recess  scooped  out  of  the  impending  mountain- 
side above,  a  sudden  snort  brought  us  up,  and  from 
some  high  bush  fifty  yards  ahead  there  protruded  the 
ugly  armed  snout  of  a  rhinoceros.  The  wind  was  right 
and  he  had  evidently  not  seen  us,  for  his  head  turned 
to  and  fro,  gazing ;  so  I  gently  brought  my  glass  to 
bear.  He  carried  a  good  head,  the  two  horns  being 
more  even  in  length  than  in  my  previous  specimen  at 
Elmenteita.  Motioning  to  Salim,  he  handed  me  the 
•450,  and  with  it  (thoughtfully)  a  couple  of  "  solid " 
cartridges,  one  of  which  I  directed  to  the  junction  of  neck 
and  shoulders,  though,  owing  to  intervening  bush,  I 
could  hardly  see  so  far  back.  The  shot  was  followed  by 
heavy  and  continuous  crashing  among  the  brushwood — 
presumably  the  death-flurry ;  but  w^e  were  soon  un- 
deceived on  that  point,  when  two  rhino  dashed  out 
straight  ahead  and  at  full  gallop  made  direct  for  where 
we  stood  in  the  open.  A  couple  of  yards  to  the  left 
was  a  thin  burnt  bush,  a  mere  skeleton,  behind  which 
we  jumped,  and  five  seconds  later  the  pair  (which  I  now 
saw  were  a  big  cow  with  long  thin  horn,  and  a  three- 
parts-grown  calf)  passed  where  we  had  a  moment  before 
been  standing,  but  without  seeing  us,  though  so  near. 


170  ON   SAFARI 

At  the  same  moment  I  saw  there  was  another  pair,  both 
big  brutes,  crashing  through  the  thicker  bush  on  our 
left,  some  thirty  yards  away,  while  beyond  them  was 
yet  another  rhino  on  the  inner  sloj^e  of  the  conch 
aforesaid.  This  last,  however,  displayed  a  totally 
different  demeanour.  He  was  either  overwhelmed  with 
rage  or  convulsed  by  some  violent  emotion ;  for  he  ran 
hither  and  thither,  rearing  up  forward,  snorting  and 
grunting,  and  presently  reached  the  sky-line,  where  he 
presented  a  picture  of  fury  spoiling  for  a  fight,  wheeling- 
round  in  every  direction  and  with  his  stump  of  a  tail 
stuck  vertically  upright. 

Meanwhile,  I  had  necessarily  kept  an  eye  on  the 
first  pair,  lest  after  jDassing  us  so  near  they  should  have 
got  our  wind ;  but  after  a  single  halt  about  a  hundred 
yards  away,  to  my  infinite  relief,  they  held  their  course 
along  the  valley. 

Salim  at  this  point  called  my  attention  to  yet 
another  rhino — the  sixth — standing  quite  motionless  in 
full  outline  on  the  ridge  ahead,  but  further  away,  say 
200  yards. 

Concludino-  that  the  enrag-ed  rhino  on  the  ridg-e  to 
our  left  must  be  the  wounded  animal,  we  proceeded 
with  due  caution  in  his  direction — so  soon,  that  is,  as 
the  second  pair,  which  had  passed  between  us  and  him, 
had  got  sufficiently  far  to  leeward  to  leave  us  a  safe 
road.  AVe  had  already  arrived  within  sixty  yards  or  so 
— rather  too  far  to  make  sure,  as  the  beast  still  kept 
constantly  on  the  move,  snorting,  rearing  and  wheeling 
— when  we  lost  sight,  and  hurrying  to  the  crest  the 
rhino  was  nowhere  in  view :  nor  was  there  blood  on  the 
spoor.  That,  however,  with  pachyderms,  is  not  con- 
clusive. An  ordinary  body-wound  is  rapidly  closed  by 
their  solid  hides,  and  no  blood  is  given.  Of  course, 
should  the  lungs  be  injured,  the  animal  bleeds  from  the 
mouth. 

To  make  perfectly  certain  that  a  rhino  had  not 
fallen  dead  to  the  shot,  we  returned  to  the  original  spot, 
but  found  nothing  there.     We  then  put  in  another  hour 


J  ,      jJ       3       J        J       J 

,  J      J    '    3       >  J  J 


'    5  ,    ?  •.' 


HUNTING  ON   LAKE   SOLAI 


171 


on  the  eland's  spoor,  passing  on  our  way  the  sixth  rhino, 
still  quiescent  on  his  ridge  and  attended  by  numerous 
tick-birds.  The  eland  now  led  us  upwards  and  west- 
wards, on  to  open  veld  where  we  could  see  for  miles 
stretchino-  away  towards  the  Molo  Kiver,  and  as  nothino- 
was  in  sight,  after  four  hours'  spooring,  we  were  reluct- 
antly obliged  to  abandon  that  quest  as  c[uite  beyond 
hope. 


"SPOILIXG   FOE  A   FIGHT "   (RHINO). 


It  was  now  nearly  two  o'clock.  In  five  shots  that  day 
I  had  wounded  four  of  the  finest  game- beasts  in  Africa, 
and  had  not  got  one  of  them.  I  concluded  it  was 
Kismet,  and  sat  down  to  lunch  on  biscuits  and  cold  tea 
while  reflecting  on  the  extraordinary  events  that  had 
just  occurred.  "What  was  their  inner  history  ?  What 
strange  frenzy  had  possessed  them,  to  set  all  those 
rhinos  charging  madly  down-ivind  ?  Wild  animals 
seeking  safety  in  flight,  invariably  point  their  noses  into 
the  wind  ;  that  is  their  safeguard.     Naturally  one  had 


172  ON   SAFARI 

concluclecl,  on  first  seeing  their  wild  rush  direct  upon  us, 
that  they  were  deliberately  charging  to  the  shot — to  the 
spot  w^hence  the  sound  had  come — presumably  to  exact 
retribution.  But  their  never  stopping,  their  holding 
that  wild  career  afar,  negatived  any  such  solution. 
'Twas  better  so  ;  but  it  leaves  their  precise  motive,  their 
line  of  reasoning,  a  mystery. 

Determined  to  risk  no  more  "regrettable  incidents" 
that  day,  we  set  out  direct  for  camp ;  but  finding  that 
the  spoor  of  the  angry  rhino  led  in  the  same  direction, 
as  a  mere  matter  of  duty  we  followed  on  it,  though  I 
had  lost  all  faith  in  my  star. 

Salim  presently  stopped,  pointing  ahead,  and  I  saw 
among  sere  grass,  150  yards  away,  something  that 
appeared  yellow.  Both  my  men  declared  this  to  be  the 
wounded  rhino,  lying  down.  I  felt  convinced  they 
were  mistaken,  though  rhinos  certainly  do  take  extra- 
ordinary colours,  dependent  on  the  nature  of  the  mud 
in  their  latest  w^allow.  We  had  crept  in  to  100  yards 
when  something  like  a  big  paw  slowly  stretched 
heavenwards,  then  disappeared.  "  Lion  ?  "  I  said,  but 
both  men  persisted  in  their  former  verdict.  Now  it  was 
perfectly  open  prairie  all  round,  devoid  of  shelter  or 
refuge  of  any  kind,  and  in  such  ground  it  would  be 
unwise  to  "walk-up"  a  wounded  rhino — especially 
such  an  evil-tempered  beast  as  that  we  had  just  been 
watching,  though  one  need  not  hesitate  to  take-on  a 
lion  so.  ^Yhile  firmly  of  opinion  that  the  yellow  object 
ahead  ivas  a  lion  asleep,  I,  this  luckless  day,  allowed 
myself  to  be  overruled  by  the  two  hunters,  who  (with 
their  keener,  savage  eyesight)  were  ecjually  positive  that 
it  was  the  rhino — indeed,  Salim  even  explained  how  the 
beast  was  lying. 

It  was  Kismet  once  more.  On  firing  (aiming,  as  for 
a  rhino,  rather  low),  up  sprang  a  lioness,  and  within 
three  bounds  disappeared  in  a  dip,  while  all  around  the 
veld  w\Ts  full  of  bouncing  lion-cubs  as  big  as  setters — 
six  or  seven  of  them,  the  men  declared.  The  whole 
family   had    been    lying  asleep  in  the  grass,  and,  had 


HUNTING   ON   LAKE   SOLAI  173 

we  crept  iu,  tliey  might  have  been  approached  within 
fifteen  yards — though  fifty  would  have  been  near 
enouo;h. 

By  way  of  concluding  this  unbroken  record  of 
catastrophe,  it  may  be  added  that  a  few  weeks  later  I 
was  informed  by  the  Hon.  Cyril  Ward  that  he  had  come 
across,  on  the  Molo  River,  a  newly-killed  rhinoceros 
corresponding  in  description  to  the  above,  and  a  couple 
of  days  later  than  the  events  here  described.  The 
distance  between  the  two  points  would  be  some  ten  or 
twelve  miles. 

During  the  campward  march,  querulous,  despondent 
thought  was  deflected  into  new  channels  by  a  curious 
incident.  Afar  on  the  veld  fluttered  some  white  object. 
Thinking  it  might  be  a  signal  placed  by  my  brother  direct- 
ing us  to  a  message  from  him — a  back- veld  post-oflice — 
I  rode  thither.  It  proved  to  be  the  landmark  of  a  new 
farm-boundary !  Even  these  remote  wilds  were  being- 
bought  up  by  enterprising  settlers.  In  a  few  years, 
presumptively,  cattle  and  sheep  will  have  displaced  the 
lion,  the  rhino  and  the  eland.  Such  is  British  progress, 
and  it  is  rioht.  At  home  under ''Free  Trade" — be  it 
for  better  or  for  w^orse — success  in  pastoral  or  agri- 
cultural pursuits  has  long  been  impossible ;  such  oc- 
cupations were  deliberately  sacrificed  generations  ago, 
to  the  interest  of  manufactures  and  cognate  industries. 
At  home — so  long  as  our  islands  remain  the  workshop 
of  the  world — the  artisan  and  mechanic  may  flourish : 
the  farmer  and  flock-master  never.  Whether  these 
latter  can  profitably  be  translated  to  equatorial  uplands, 
time  and  hard  experience  alone  will  show.  The  energy 
and  enterprise  are  not  lacking,  as  this  incident  tends  to 
show ;  but  Equatoria  presents  problems,  and  perhaps 
difliculties,  which  difler  fundamentally  from  those  of 
Canada  or  the  Antipodes.  May  they  prove  soluble  ! 
The  converse  a  naturalist  may  be  allowed  to  regret, 
namely,  that  when  British  flock-masters  shall  have 
settled-up  the  African  veld,  w^e  cannot  also  translate 
the  displaced  elephants  and  rhinos,  the  lions,  antelopes 


174 


ON   SAFARI 


and  the  rest,  to  wander  on  the  depopulated  hills  of 
Enoiand. 

As  a  fitting  finale  to  this,  the  most  luckless  day  of  a 
lifetime,  there  followed  a  nightmare.  During  the  small 
hours  there  occurred  in  dreams  an  attack  on  our  camp 
by  yelling  Masai,  whose  assegais  came  hurtling  through 
the  canvas  walls  and  stuck  cj^uivering  in  the  earth 
around.     On  awakening  I  found  myself  sprawling  on  the 

ground-sheet,  seeking  for  a  gun.     W had  reported 

seeing  during  the  day  some  Masai  cattle  by  the  lake- 
side. Their  presence  there  had  puzzled  us,  as  all  the 
Masai  should  now  be  in  the  "  Reserve,"  fifty  miles  away. 
Hence  these  woes. 


BUSH-SHRIKE  {Dnjoscopus  luciuleiisis) — Ibis,  1901. 


CHAPTER  XV 

HUNTING   ON   LAKE   &0LA1— {Concluded) 

WATERBUCK.    WILD-DOGS,    WART-HOG   AND    RHINOS 
(return    TO    NAKURU) 

The  following  is  a  note  from  my  brother's  diary — 

"  A  special  object  with  me  was  to  procure  a  good 
example  of  the  sing-sing  waterbiick,  small  herds  of  which 
we  had  observed  feeding  both  at  dawn  and  dusk  on  the 
grassy  Hats  far  away  beyond  the  marsh.  These  ante- 
lopes, however,  are  not  seen  by  day,  retiring  then  into 
the  thicker  bush. 

"  Shortly  after  daybreak,  we  marked  a  herd  of  eight, 
including  one  fine  bull,  which,  it  seemed,  might  be 
stalked  from  within  the  cover  of  the  marsh  itself — this 
being  embowered  amidst  miles  of  waving  rush.  This 
operation  we  proceeded  to  carry  out,  but  promptly  encoun- 
tered unforeseen  difficalty.  For  this  bog  was  over  knee- 
deep  in  clinging  mire,  overgrown  with  dense  marsh-plants, 
flags  and  papyrus,  and  intercepted  with  trailers  that 
entangled  every  step.  Moreover,  a  herd  of  elephants 
had  recently  lingered  therein,  leaving  cavernous  footprints 
half-a-yard  in  depth  and  filled  with  a  compound  that  it 
would  be  an  injustice  to  filthy  water  to  describe  as 
such. 

"  After  half-an-hour  of  these  joys,  we  descried,  above 
the  bobbing  bulrushes  ahead,  the  tips  of  those  coveted 
horns.  But  while  trying  to  secure  a  better  view,  despite 
all  our  care,  the  animals  took  alarm,  moved  away,  and 
finally  oflfered  but  a  long  and  difiicult  shot  which  produced 
no  result. 

"  Rejoicing  at   least   to    escape   from  the   mephitic 

175 


176 


ON   SAFAEI 


morass,  we  eagerly  plunged  sliorewards,  mired  up  to  the 
eyes,  but  looking  forward  to  a  few  moments'  rest  on  terra 
Jirma  ere  resuming  the  chase.  But  that  was  not  to  be 
our  lot.  Hardly  had  we  cleared  this  purgatory  than  we 
found  ourselves  surrounded  by  a  pack  of  hunting-dogs 
that  kept  bounding  up  among  the  bushes  on  every  side. 
I  tried  my  very  hardest  to  kill  one,  but  they  were  not 
easy  to  hit,  so  rapidly  did  they  appear  and  disappear 
among  the  covert.  Three  or  four  shots  produced  no 
visible  effect,  though,  even  had  one  or  more  do.o's  been 


">    \ 


\Jk 


>^ 


^ 


^>' 


A   PACK   OF   WILD-DOGS. 


killed,  they  would  necessarily  have  dropped  below  our 
sight. 

"  Presentlv  a  big  black-and-tan  dog,  coming  out  on  an 
open,  reared  upright  to  see  what  was  going  on,  and 
received  a  bullet  in  the  head  that  dropped  him  '  all  of  a 
heap.'  On  running  forward  to  the  kill — which  involved 
a  long  detour  and  finally  plunging  waist-deep  through  a 
channel  of  black  mire — we  observed  another  of  the  pack 
limping  away  with  a  broken  leg. 

"Following  on  the  spoor,  which  was  easily  held  on 
more  open  ground  beyond,  we  had  just  entered  some 
thin  wood,  when  Ali  touched  my  shoulder,  pointing 
forward    through    the    trees.     There,    cantering    back 


HUNTING  ON  LAKE  SOLAI  177 

directly  towards  us,  came  our  eight  waterbuck  !  Sinking 
behind  a  friendly  boulder,  we  watched  them  come  with 
frequent  halts,  standing  to  gaze  back  over  their  shoulders. 
It  was  obvious  that  they  had  been  startled  by  the 
retreating  wild-dogs,  and,  luckily  for  us,  in  the  presence 
of  this  new  danger  they  had  forgotten  the  old.  For 
they  were  quite  unsuspicious  of  our  proximity,  and  all 
attention  was  concentrated  on  their  rear,  whence  they 
clearly  feared  attack.  A  memorable  picture  they  pre- 
sented as  they  trotted  past  close  below,  the  bull  leading 
— a  true  monarch,  majestic  in  massive  form  and  stately 
carriaoje.  It  was,  however,  downrio;ht  bad  luck  for  him 
to  find  a  foe  at  each  end  of  the  trail,  and  a  bullet  on  the 
shoulder  ended  his  career. 

"  Though  I  had  never  before  seen  hunting-dogs 
[Lycaon  pictus)  in  life,  yet  I  instinctively  recognised 
what  these  brutes  were,  partly  by  their  half-white 
brushes  flashing  over  the  scrub  as  they  puzzled  out  the 
scent,  apparently  interested  rather  than  alarmed  at  our 
intrusion." 

The  photo  overleaf  shows  the  big  dog  above  men- 
tioned, a  fine  adult,  clean  in  fur,  and  with  none  of  the 
mange  that  often  disfigures  these  animals. 

Besides  waterbuck  and  ostriches,  there  were  also^ 
around  Lake  Solai  a  few  Jackson's  hartebeests,  and  th& 
marsh  swarmed  with  the  East- African  Bohor  reedbuck 
[Cervicapra  ivardi).  One  day,  riding  together  round 
the  vlei,  we  were  directed  by  the  vultures  to  a  good 
male  specimen  of  this  latter  which  had  been  killed  the 
night  before  (as  the  pugs  showed)  by  a  leopard.  On  the 
hills  above  we  shot  steinbuck,  oribi,  klipsp ringer  and 
wart-hog. 

Every  morning  at  dawn  we  had  sent  out  scouts 
in  difl"erent  directions  to  report  on  w^hat  game  they  could 
discover — and  especially  to  locate  a  good  rhino  bull ; 
but  no  satisfactory  information  was  forthcoming  by  such 
means.  One  day  we  had  together  explored  a  long  rock- 
girt  valley  that  penetrated  the  hills  towards  the  north- 

N 


178  ON   SAFARI 

west,  without  seeing  anything  beyond  the  usual  game 
— a  few  zebras,  ostriches,  gazelles,  and  some  klipspringers 
on  the  crags — when  about  ten  o'clock  we  sat  down 
beneath  a  mimosa  and  sent  our  gun-bearers  over  the 
rocky  range  on  the  west  to  investigate  what  lay  beyond. 
Presently  to  us  smoking  in  the  shade  they  reported 
three  rhinos  in  the  valley  beyond,  and  having  scaled  this 
ridge  w^e  verified  the  fact  for  ourselves,  the  rhinos  looking 
absolutely  pure  white  (owing  to  the  calcareous  mud  they 
had  last  w^allowed  in).  They  were  a  couple  of  miles 
away,  down  the  wdnd,  and  moving  further  in  that 
direction — involving  a  long  detour.  The  wind,  more- 
over, was  shifty  and  treacherous,  so  that  many  changes 
in  tactics  became  necessary  before  we  gained  a  command- 
ing position. 

The  scene  of  operations  was  a  flat-floored  valley  two 
miles  across,  walled-in  by  low  abrupt  hills  and  over- 
grown with  thin  open  forest,  mostly  thorns.  Beneath 
a  group  of  these — shady,  flat-topped  mimosas — two  of 
the  rhinos  had,  during  our  long  manoeuvres  with  the 
wind,  drawn  up  to  spend  their  midday  siesta.  The 
third  we  could  not  see,  but  knew  he  was  in  the  bush 
somewhere  near  by. 

The  feature  of  this  stalk  was  the  extraordinary 
callousness  to  threatening  danger,  and  its  manifold  signs, 
displayed  by  those  two  great  pachyderms.  Owing  to 
the  constantly-varying  wind,  pufl's  of  which  came  from 
opposite  airts  within  a  few  seconds  of  each  other,  we  had 
twice  unwittingly  given  alarm  to  some  groups  of  liarte- 
beests  and  gazelles  ^  that  happened  to  fall  under  our  lee. 
On  one  of  tliese  occasions  several  antelopes  galloped  past 
within  a  comparatively  short  distance  of  the  sleepy  mon- 
sters, but  without  arousing  their  suspicion.  Then,  during 
the  final  approach,  when  we  were  already  close  in,  a  band 
of  shrieking  plovers  [Stephanihyx  onelanoi^terus) — the 

^  These  gazelles  were  all  G.  grant i,  except  a  single  example  of 
G.  thomsoni — the  only  one  seen  at  Solai,  which  cle;u-ly  lies  north 
of  their  range,  though  they  aie  abundant  a  dozen  miles  to  the 
southward. 


»  5      3  5       3      J 


15        '    ' 


-  J  J  J  J      J           , 

'  '  '  ,    '  >        J       3 

'  '  '  >'  '           IJ 

'  '  '  5  '             ,          , 


WILD   DOG   MllH   TWO   .SPOTTED    HYEXAS. 


Marq.  dt  lalScala,  Photo. 


KHINO. — FROM    LIFE. 


HUNTING   ON  LAKE   SOLAI 


179 


nosiest  bird  in  Africa — sprang  from  an  intervening 
marshy  patch,  rending  the  air  with  shrillest  and  most 
persistent  vociferations.  All  Nature  seemed  to  join 
in  common  warning,  yet  no  heed  did  those  rhinos 
take. 

They  stood  side  by  side,  the  nearer  beast  (which  was 
the  larger  of  the  two)  covering  the  head,  neck  and  part- 


"i'v 


■^ 


.-*; 


.-rfe^-^Sr^       "^ 


-m<w''^ 


SLEEPING   BEAUTIES. 


shoulder  of  the  one  beyond,  while  the  trunk  of  the 
sheltering  mimosa  concealed  from  view  hotli  the  central 
pairs  of  legs — conveying  an  absurd  appearance  of  but  a 
single  animal,  and  that  about  eight  yards  long  !  We 
had  crawled  in  to  a  thin  tree  about  fifty  yards  away,  and 

AV ,  who  fired  first,  placed  his  ball  on  the  shoulder  of 

the  nearer  beast,  while  I,  instantly  thereafter,  directed 
mine  as  far  forward  as  was  visible  of  his  companion.  At 
the  shots,  both  rhinos  whipped  round,  with  snorts  and 
amazing  agility,  and  for  several  seconds,  being  at  such 


180 


ON   SAFAEI 


very  close  quarters,  matters  became  lively  enough  till 
another  shot  dropped  the  bull  with  a  broken  hind-leg. 

The  cow-rhino  meanwhile  made  a  determined  dash 
as  though  to  get  round  under  our  wind,  circling  back  on 
the  left  at  a  ponderous  gallop,  and  hidden  by  intervening 
bush  and  clumps  of  tall  grass.  She,  however,  gave  the 
situation  away  by  her  snorting  and  the  crashing  of  brush- 
wood. Kunning  in  that  direction,  I  got  a  momentary 
glimpse  of  her  between  two  tall  grass-clumps,  looking 


' THOROUGHLY  NASTY. 


thoroughly  nasty,  with  head  carried  high  and  tail  stand- 
ing erect.  So  threatening  appeared  this  rush  that  {as 
she  was  already  within  short  distance  of  the  wind)  it 
was  necessary  to  take  some  risks,  and  at  the  next  opening 
in  the  bush  I  gave  her  a  quick  shot  which  fortunately 
sent  her  headlong  to  earth.  The  •450-solid  struck  the 
top  of  the  shoulder,  smashing  the  spine,  and  she  dropped 
in  an  upright  position.  The  two  rhinos  lay  dead  within 
some  eighty  yards  of  each  other. 

The  third  rhino,  which,  though  nearly  full-grown, 
was  probably  the  produce  of  this  pair,  showed  up  outside 


HUNTING   ON   LAKE   SOLAI  181 

the  bush  beyond  ;  but  after  beginning  an  offensive  demon- 
stration, we  were  o-lad  to  see  retired  whence  he  came. 
The  two  rhinos  carried  blunt  massive  horns,  measuring 
around  the  base,  No.  1,  18  ins.  (front),  17 J  ins.  (hind), 
and,  No.  2,  18  ins.  each  respectively,  the  lengths  being 
15  and  14|-  ins. 

We  suffered  much  inconvenience  and  discomfort  at 
this  period  from  heavy  thunderstorms,  which  deluged 
our  camp  every  afternoon  ;  while  owing  to  its  marshy 
environment,  it  was  infested  by  swarms  of  jumping  frogs, 
which  even  invaded  our  tents.  At  night  the  display  of 
electric  flash-lights  in  the  heavens  was  often  superb. 

Loading  up  our  ivory,  skins  and  other  trophies,  we 
struck  camp  and  left  Solai  on  March  1,  holding  for  the 
Alabanyata,  and  securing  a  good  female  of  B.  jacksoni, 
with  16-in.  head,  on  the  march.  On  the  river  named 
we  found  General  Baden- Powell  encamped,  and  now  learnt 
(to  our  regret)  that  it  was  to  the  defender  of  Mafeking 
that  we  had  unwittingly  showed  a  "  clean  pair  of  heels  " 
on  the  night  of  the  23rd  (p.  152-3).  The  General  rode 
up  as  we  were  off-skinning  a  grand  bull  of  Neumann's 

hartebeest,  carrying  19-in.  horns,  that  W had  just 

shot  from  the  track.  The  bullet  had  entered  the  eve  at 
a  very  long  range,  and  we  were  rather  surprised  when 
we  noticed  its  species,  further  west  than  we  had  expected 
to  find  it. 

Eiding  on  together,  we  presently  began  to  notice, 
far  ahead,  large  troops  of  zebras,  many  hundreds  in  all, 
steadily  moving  up  the  valley  towards  us.  None 
having  been  observed  here  on  our  way  up  ten  days 
before,  this  was  evidently  a  migratory  movement  in 
progress.  There  were  also  several  kongoni  in  sight,  and 
"  B.-P."  presently  went  after  three  big  bulls  on  our  left. 
An  hour  or  so  later,  a  retroo;rade  movement  amono-  the 
troops  of  advancing  zebras  attracted  my  attention. 
Several  herds  were  galloping  wildly  back  in  the  direction 
whence  they  had  come.  Thinking  that  it  might  possibly 
be  a  lion  that  had  thus  thrown  them  back  in  confusion, 


182 


ON   SAFAEI 


I  brought  my  glass  to  bear  :  and  there,  apparently  in  the 
midst  of  the  flying  zebras,  rode  the  General,  who  had 
thus  utilised  those  animals  to  screen  an  advance  on  his 
three  kongoni.     It  was  a  clever  manoeuvre,  and  he  well 

deserved  the  splen- 
did 23j-in.  head 
of  Buhalis  jachsoni 
that  it  produced. 

Note  that  at 
this  point — that  is, 
due  north  of  the 
crater  of  Meningai 
— the  rano;e  of  these 
two  species  of  harte- 
beest  overlaps.  We 
had,  as  stated,  that 
mornino;  obtained 
an  example  of  Neu- 
mann's hartebeest 
(which  we  had 
hitherto  only  found 
to  the  east  of  Na- 
kuru)  a  league  or 
more  to  the  west- 
ward of  the  spot, 
near  Costello's 
Shamba,  where  this 
Jackson's  hartebeest 
was  slain. 
This  veld  is  frequented  by  wart-hogs  in  considerable 
numbers.  One  day  as  we  rode  along  together,  a  big 
solitary  boar  was  observed  to  disappear  in  a  jDatch  of 
grass.  This  grass,  on  nearer  approach,  was  seen  to  be 
of  no  great  extent,  perhaps  a  couple  of  acres.  My 
brother,  accordingly,  went  round  to  the  leeward,  while, 
with  a  couple  of  "  boys,"  I  rode  through  the  covert 
from  above.  Presently  the  boar  broke  away  with  a  rush 
from  under  my  pony's  feet,  snorting  and  grunting.  It 
took  the  desired  direction,  and  dropping  to  the  shot,  lay 


BRINGING  HOME   THE   IVOEY. 


HUNTING   ON   LAKE   SOLAI  183 

apparently  dead.  As  we  approached,  liowever,  from 
coiivergiDg  directions,  the  pig  suddenly  sprang  to  his 

feet  and  charged  on  AY ,  who  was  within  a  dozen 

yards.  A  shot  in  the  nape  terminated  this  gallant 
effort.  As  a  rule,  the  wart-hog,  with  all  his  formidable 
armament,  seems  less  apt  to  take  the  offensive  than  his 
European  cousin.  One  of  these  animals,  shot  by  my 
brother,  was  entirely  devoid  of  the  usual  warts  on  the 
lower  face,  while  the  set  of  the  tusks  was  upright. 

AV crossed  over  the  rugged  shoulder  of  JNIeningai 

in  one  more  effort  to  secure  the  elusive  Chanler's 
reedbuck,  but  again  these  grey  phantoms  kept  their 
skins  intact. 

One  day,  being  near  the  western  summit,  we  went 
to  look  into  the  crater  of  j\leningai,  and  an  appalling 
abyss  it  is — perhaps  as  big  a  hole  as  exists  in  the  crust 
of  our  planet.  A  few  hundred  yards  below  the  external 
lip  there  is  a  lower  rim,  and  having  descended  to  this, 
we  could  look  down  into  the  full  depth  of  the  chasm, 
apparently  2,000  or  3,000  ft.  The  width  may  be 
perhaps  three  miles  across,  and  the  sides  slope  inwards 
and  downwards  as  regularly  as  a  funnel,  the  lower  depths 
apparently  tree-clad  and  bushy. 

We  attempted  to  descend,  being  at  first  deceived  by 
the  apparent  simplicity  of  the  undertaking.  Not  for 
long,  however,  were  we  left  in  doubt.  It  was  the  dis- 
tance that  had  hidden  the  terrible  rugosity  of  its  depths 
from  view — depths  that  are  practically  impenetrable. 
But  we  little  dreamed  (as  we  have  since  been  posi- 
tively assured  by  men  who  do  not  lightly  accept  fabled 
tales)  that  that  vast  abyss  is  still  one  of  Nature's  own 
sanctuaries.  Elephants  descend  its  depths  to  breed 
therein,  rhinos  take  their  ease  amidst  subterranean 
bush,  while  lions  occupy  its  many  inaccessible  strong- 
holds. Men,  it  is  said,  had  descended  and  been  lost — 
probably  eaten  !  Such,  we  were  told,  is  the  crater  of 
Meningai. 

That  evening  at  Nakuru  we  enjoyed  an  odd  experi- 
ence— an  incident  perhaps   unique   in   the    process  of 


184  ON   SAFARI 

colonising  even  sucli  savage  remnants  of  motlier-earth 
as  British  East  Africa.  We  were  dining  at  the  Dak 
bungalow,  when  two  squatters — "  new  chums  " — came 
in  and  joined  us.  They  had,  so  they  informed  us, 
walked  in  from  a  "  farm "  they  w^ere  holding  some 
twelve  miles  out — that  is  (if  we  understood  aright),  they 
were,  and  had  been  for  a  fortnight,  "  personally  occupy- 
ing," within  the  meaning  of  the  Act,  a  stretch  of  land 
that  had  been  allotted  to  an  absent  buyer.  Let  us  hope 
that  that  absentee  was  not  a  land-speculator,  a  species 
which,  in  these  new  colonies,  should  be  absolutely 
debarred  from  taking  root.  AVell,  the  first  yarn  these 
two  new  chums  told  us,  with  self-evident  veracity,  was 
that  during  their  march-in  some  object  lying  on  a 
hillock  had  attracted  their  attention.  On  cautiously 
approaching  this,  they  had  discovered  from  an  adjoining 
bluff  that  the  mysterious  object  was  a  lion,  asleep,  and 
not  over  forty  yards  distant — a  sort  of  "  soft  chance  " 
that  systematic  hunters  travel  hundreds  of  miles,  often 
in  vain  search,  to  fall  in  with.  Our  friends,  however, 
after  full  consultation,  decided  to  withdraw,  not  being 
sure  of  their  weapons.  "  Will  a  Snider  kill  a  lion  ?  "  was 
their  question — the  answer  to  which  could  only  depend 
upon  the  man  behind  the  Snider.  Probably  their  prudent 
decision  was  justifiable. 

During  dinner  one  of  the  pair,  a  big  powerful  young 
fellow  "  fra'  Glasgie,"  rather  amused  us  by  a  woebegone 
description  of  his  life  on  the  veld,  and  of  the  miseries 
he  had  endured  from  the  nightly  serenade  of  wild  beasts. 
They  had  no  house,  only  a  tent :  and  not  once,  according 
to  his  account,  had  he  dared  during;  a  whole  fortniorht 
to  close  an  eye.  For  a  time,  naturally,  we  thought  he 
was  romancing — making  a  good  story  of  it — but  soon 
enough  the  vividness  of  his  complaints  brought  home  to 
us  all  the  state  of  abject  funk  to  which  he  had  brought 
himself.  As  his  partner  tersely  put  it,  "  The  fear  of  death 
was  on  the  man." 

We  were,  nevertheless,  surprised  enough  the  next 
morning  when  his  pal  (Lindsay)  came  along  to  our  camp 


HUNTING   ON  LAKE  SOLAI 


185 


and  reported  that  tlie  poor  wretch  had  bolted — gone 
coastwards  by  the  midnight  train,  leaving  in  the  lurch 
his  partner,  his  engagements,  everything  !  With  a  huge 
frame  and  a  tenor  voice,  but  the  heart  of  a  mouse,  he  had 
evidently  concluded  within  himself  that  he  wasn't  the 


man  for  Africa,  and  there  he  was  right 


WHYDAH-FINCHES  {Penthetria  ardens). 


CHAPTER   XVI 

THE   MAU   rOKEST 
AFTER   BUFFALO    AT   KISHOBO 

Travellers  on  tlie  U.E.  enjoy  glimpses  of  equa- 
torial forest  whew,  on  passing  Limoru,  the  line  takes 
that  headlong  plunge  of  1,200  ft.  down  the  escarp- 
ment into  the  Rift  Valley.  Then,  after  traversing  the 
"Equatorial  Trench"  by  Naivasha,  Elmenteita  and 
Nakuru,  on  the  opposite  side  there  begins  the  other 
forest-region — that  of  the  Man. 

None  can  view  these  forests,  even  cursorily  from  a 
carriage-wdndow,  without  amazement  —  such  is  the 
density  of  their  growth,  aloft  and  alow.  At  home, 
heavy  evergreen  foliage  above  stunts,  if  it  does  not 
kill,  plant-life  beneath.  Here  both  forms  flourish,  tier 
above  tier,  such  is  the  exuberant  vitality  of  the 
tropics. 

But  it  may  be  asked,  How  can  animal-life  exist 
amidst  matted  viewless  jungle,  and  how  can  hunter 
penetrate  ?  The  hunter  cannot  penetrate — saving  only 
in  limited  and  laborious  degree ;  while  game  do  not 
abide  therein,  excej)t  specialised  forms  such  as  the  yet 
unknown  forest-hog  (Hylochcerus),  said  to  stand  four 
feet  in  height,  and  the  almost  unknown  bongo  (Boocei^cus 
euryceros) — neither  yet  shot  by  white  man.^ 

The  Mau  forests  are,  nevertheless,  a  chief  stronghold 
of  the  East- African  bufl'alo.  These,  however,  live,  not 
in  the  forest-depths — though  they  utilise  them  for 
shelter  and  refuge  by  day — but  upon  the  "  opens"  that 

^  See  subsequent  notes  on  this  subject  in  Chapter  XXIV. 

186 


THE   MAU   FOREST 


187 


characterise  the  densest  and  most  gloomy  jungles,  as  it 
is  the  purpose  of  this  chapter  to  explain. 

Buffalo  we  had  not  originally  included  in  our  pro- 
gramme, having  already  fair  specimens  from  the  Pung- 
wee  Eiver,  but  decided  on  devoting  a  week  or  two  to 
the  Mau  forest,  where  Lord  Hindlip  had  kindly  promised 
to  lay  us  on. 

On  ]\rarcli  5  we  encamped  at  Kishobo,  another 
"World's  View,"  standing  at  7,000  ft,  and  overlooking 


spacious  panorama  of  tropical  woodland,  waste  and  wild. 
In  the  foreground,  apparently  close  by,  though  twelve 
miles  away,  glisten  the  waters  of  beautiful  Lake  Nakuru, 
nestling  beneath  the  sombre  crater  of  Meningai ;  while, 
far  beyond,  to  the  north  and  east,  the  great  Cordilleras 
of  Laikipia  and  Kamasea  pierce  the  heavens.  South  and 
west  all  is  forest,  forest,  forest. 

Readers  of  A  Lodge  in  the  Wilderness  will  recall 
Musuru,  situate  in  fancy  on  this  same  Mau  highland. 
There  world-politics  in  their  broader  plane  were  eluci- 
dated ;  here  we  viewed  a  more  practical  stage — the  first 
stage — the  rough-hewing,  the  tearing  by  violence  from 
savage  nature  of   that  dominion  allotted    to  man — to 


188  ON   SAFAEI 

those  men,  at  least,  who  can  seize  it.  In  East  Africa 
one  sees  forest  and  jungle  assailed,  torn  from  their 
age-long  sleep,  and  replaced  by  stock-farm  and  grazing, 
with  ordered  rows  of  byres  and  dairies,  tillage  and 
paddock.  Such  detail  passes  my  own  knowledge ;  but 
it  interested  to  watch  a  peer  of  the  realm  (and  a 
peeress  too)  wrestle  in  handgrips  with  a  fearsome  re- 
volving machine — I  forget  its  name,  but  it  produced 
butter.  This  by  way  of  half-an-hour's  relaxation  before 
dinner. 

Surely  there  are  thousands  in  the  Mother  islands  to 
whom  a  strenuous  life  in  the  Greater  Britain  over- 
seas, whatever  its  risks  or  prospects,  is  preferable  to 
dancing  constant  attendance  on  poverty  and  "  unem- 
ployment" at  home,  where  our  rulers,  blinding  their 
eyes  to  plainest  signs  of  world-progress,  are  content  to 
truckle  to  sordid  "  Trades-unions  "  and  such-like  (because 
these  control  millions  of  mechanical  votes),  and  elect  to 
follow  a  mob  instead  of  to  lead  an  empire.  "  Wake  up, 
England,"  before  the  awakening  comes  from  without. 

Southward  from  Kishobo  commences  a  forest-region 
that  extends  into  the  Sotik  country,  four  or  five  days' 
march,  and  I  know  not  how  much  beyond.  This,  we 
understood,  was  a  haunt  of  buffalo  ;  nor  were  we  mis- 
informed, for  hardly  had  daylight  broken  than  I  was  on 
burning  spoor.  These  buffaloes — there  were  three  of 
them — were  less  than  half-an-hour  ahead,  as  evidenced 
by  "  sign." 

The  sjDot  was  one  of  those  "  forest-opens "  that 
characterise  this  region — about  100  acres  of  short  sweet 
grass  walled-in  by  densest  timber.  Into  this  timber  led 
the  trail.  It  could  not  go  elsewhere,  and  our  eyes  told 
us  there  was  no  game  outside.  Not  knowing  myself 
intimately  the  ways  of  buffalo,  I  had  misgivings  as  to 
the  safety  of  following  close  upon  their  heels  into  view- 
less thicket.  Not  so  my  companion,  a  Somali  hunter 
lent  me  by  Lord  Hindlip.  He  treated  buffalo  as  we 
might  rabbits,  and,  reassured  by  his  total  indifference, 
I  followed  in.     The  beasts  had  not  gone  far.     All  they 


THE  MAU   FOREST  189 

souglit,  apparently,  was  shelter  from  tlie  sun ;  for  within 
200  yards  they  were  lying  asleep.  Even  that  short 
crawl  involved  nnspeakable  labour ;  but  presently  I 
heard  stertorous  breathing  and  low  grunts  apparently 
not  ten  yards  ahead.  It  was  then  that  the  misgivings 
alluded  to  arose  in  my  mind ;  but  my  black  companion 
coolly  continued  to  peer  and  spy  into  the  mural  foliage 
before  us.  Another  yard  or  two  we  crawled  forward, 
prone  beneath  interlacing  boughs  and  brambles,  then 
slowly  raised  ourselves  beliind  a  sheltering  trunk.  Still 
we  saw^  nothing.  But  the  buffaloes  either  saw,  smelt  or 
heard  us,  for  there  ensued  a  mighty  crash,  a  bushy  tail 
whirled  aloft,  there  was  one  glimpse  of  a  broad  black 
stern,  the  curve  of  a  huge  horn — and  they  were  gone. 

They  did  not  go  far,  for  four  times  that  morning  we 
overhauled  them,  each  time  with  a  similar  result — or 
worse.  For  never  again,  though  always  close  up,  did  I 
get  even  so  slight  a  view  as  on  that  first  approach — 
and  then  it  was  little  more  than  merely  a  vanishing 
tail-piece. 

The  idea  in  thus  persistently  following  was  the  off- 
chance  of  finding  the  game,  sooner  or  later,  in  more 
favourable  position — that  is,  being  interpreted,  that  we 
might  see  through  some  lucky  crevice  in  the  cavernous 
foliage  sufficient  black  hide  (necessarily  almost  within 
arm's  length,  since  we  could  see  no  further)  to  enable 
aim  to  be  taken. 

We  had,  as  stated,  "jumped"  buffalo  four  times. 
On  the  first  three  occasions  they  were  the  original  trio  ; 
but  the  last  was  a  single  lone  bull  whose  spoor  we  had 
cut,  and  to  whom  we  had  transferred  attention.  Him 
we  followed  till  noon,  and  never  in  my  life  have  I 
traversed  such  jungle  or  undergone  more  cruel  labour. 
Words  are  but  wasted  in  attempting  to  describe  the  alter- 
nations of  crawling,  climbing,  wriggling  and  struggling 
through,  over,  or  under  thorny  brakes. 

Wherever  light  could  penetrate,  the  bracken  grew  to 
ten  feet  in  height  (measured).  The  new  growth,  now 
coming,  was  about  three  feet. 


190 


ON   SAFARI 


My  brother's  experience  was  similar.  The  forest,  by 
clay,  was  clearly  impossible. 

One  evening,  while  yet  clear  daylight  reigned,  six 
buffalo  emerged  from  the  forest  and  were  feeding  in  an 
"  open."     We  felt  that  at  last  our  chance  had  come,  and 


A  HORNBILL   OF   THE   MAU   FOREST. 


got  well  in,  but  alas  !  all  were  cows.  At  dusk  we  heard 
another  within  the  bush-wall,  and  reached  a  spot  to 
command  his  exit ;  but  ere  he  appeared  half-an-hour 
later,  at  100  yards,  heavy  clouds,  with  solid  rain,  had 
obscured  the  slight  moon,  and  we  could  not  see  to 
shoot. 

Obviously    these    forest-opens    afforded    our    only 
chance.     The}^  varied  in  size  from  mere  pastures  of  100 


THE   MAU   FOREST  191 

acres  to  extensive  glades,  but  everywhere  walled-in  solid 
— no  interval  of  scattered  trees  frinsfed  them.  The 
game  never  entered  these  opens  till  after  dark,  and 
quitted  them  before  a  sign  of  dawn  had  appeared.  The 
alternative  was  to  try  by  full  moonlight,  and  as  that 
period  was  due  within  a  few  days,  we  utilised  the 
interval  by  a  journey  towards  the  Sotik  country. 

This  is  a  region  of  wondrous  virgin  wood ;  but 
impressions  of  these  Central-African  forests  can  hardly 
be  conveyed  in  words,  though  Stanley  and  other  vivid 
writers  have  described  them.  It  is  the  sense  that  one 
feels  rather  than  actually  sees,  since  all  beyond  the 
narrowest  limit  is  shut  out  from  view  by  tier  upon  tier 
of  overarching  foliage,  pendent,  prehensile,  parasitic,  and 
upright.  Hard  by  rise  the  bolls  of  colossal  cedars,^  half 
hidden  amid  enveloping  evergreens  and  lianas  ;  yet  their 
summits,  200  ft.  above,  are  away  in  another  world — a 
world  of  sunshine  and  blue  sky  beyond  our  view.  Below, 
all  one  sees  in  a  half-light  is  a  few  yards  of  the  bases, 
soon  to  lose  themselves,  like  pillars  of  the  Mezquita,  in 
the  vaulted  roof  overhead. 

Hour  after  hour  one  rides  throuo-h  these  forest-aisles 
overarched  with  leafage,  dark  and  eerie  as  some  cathe- 
dral crypt,  while  the  rarefied  air  chills  to  the  marrow, 
and  the  altitude,  moreover  (8,000  ft.),  renders  breathing 
oppressive  to  man  and  beast  alike.  In  gloomy  recesses, 
shut  out  for  ever  from  the  sun,  grow  ferns  much  as  one 
sees  at  home — bracken  and  blechnum,  polypody,  parsley- 
fern  and  others ;  besides  brambles,  ramps,  primroses, 
thistles  and  stiuo-ino'-uettles. 

There  are  moister  dells  where  cedars  and  forest-trees 
give  place  to  dense  growth  of  bamboos  of  such  giant 
dimensions  that  even  their  summits  pass  beyond  our  view, 
towering  up  probably  eighty  feet  or  more.  The  grey 
tree-moss,  "  old-man's  beard,"  hangs  in  pendent  festoons, 
while  an  incessant  siss-siss-siss  of  infinite  insects  and  the 

^  Though  they  are  called  cedars,  and  their  wood  is  reddish  and  of 
the  same  sweet  resinous  smell  as  cedar,  yet  I  believe  these  big  trees 
really  belong  to  the  Juniper  family. 


192 


ON   SAFARI 


croaking  of  arboreal  reptiles  runs  on  like  a  lullaby. 
Brilliant  butterflies  flit  in  sunny  glades,  but  in  the 
forest  there  is  little  other  sign  of  life.  We  saw  no 
game  therein,  save  a  chance  bushbuck  and    the  spoor 


TRUMPETER   HOKNBILL. 


of  very  large  pig.     These,  our  men  assured  us,  carried  no 
tusks.     Of  the  bongo  we  saw  not  a  sign. 

Although  unseen,  we  were,  liowever,  conscious,  by  a 
recurrent  ringing  clamour,  that  there  existed  living 
creatures  high  above — practically  in  another  world. 
These  strident  outcries  we  at  first  attributed  to  eagles, 
perhaps  correctly.  But  presently  we  realised  that  other 
feathered  neighbours,  hardly  inferior  in  size,  dwelt  over- 


THE   MAU   FOKEST 


193 


head.  These  were  huge  black  hornbills.  Merely  fleet- 
ing and  momentary  were  the  glimpses  we  could  get  w^ith 
a  spyglass ;  but,  such  as  these  were  (and  the  idea  was 
confirmed  by  those  clarion  notes),  we  concluded  that 
these  w^ere   the   great   trumpeter   hornbill  [Bycanistes 


A   HOEXBILL   OF   SOTIK. 


huccinator),  whose  portrait  is  roughly  portrayed  opposite. 
Whatever  they  were,  these  hornbills  were  numerous 
enough  in  the  dense  forest.  A  few  days  later,  in  some 
rather  more  open  country  towards  Sotik,  we  enjoyed 
a  better  view  of  quite  another  hornbill,  which  sat  on 
a  dry  branch  plunged  in  reverie.  In  this  case  the 
"  casque "  w^as  not  a  semi-separated  superstructure,  so 


194 


ON   SAFARI 


to  speak ;  but  rather  tlie  reduplication  of  a  beak 
already  grotesquely  exaggerated — as  shown  on  previous 
page. 

In  the  Sotik  countr}^  we  also  observed  many  of 
the  smaller  kind  of  hornbill  {Loj^hoceriis),  as  well 
as  crimson-winged  touracos,  dark-olive  wood-pigeons 
[Columha  arquatrix),  bush-shrikes  (Dri/oscojDUs),  black 


A  TOUEACO  OF  SOTIK  {Gcdlirex  chloroMamys). 
The  Zambesi  purple-crested  loury. 

flycatchers  wn"th  pure  white  breasts,  and  a  few^  other 
species  cpiite  unknown  to  me. 

To  return  to'  the  denser  forest.  Among  the  few 
small  birds  that  enliven  these  solitudes,  several  w^ere 
obviously  tits — their  climbing  and  prehensile  habit  and 
incessant  activity  assured  that  identification.  But  many 
of  these  were  almost  black  in  hue — as  befitted  the  gloom 
of  this  under-world.  Their  colour-scheme  suggested  an 
adaptation  to  environment ;  but  that  view  is  not  borne 
out  by  further  examination.  For  the  characteristic,  it 
appears,  is  common  to  several  of  the  African  ParidcB 
whose  haunts  are  not  confined  to  the  darkness  of  the 
tropical  forest. 

We   were    disappointed   in    seeing   nothing   of  the 


THE  MAU   FOEEST  195 

beautiful  black-and-white  Guereza  monkey  (Colohus) 
in  these  forests.  The  only  sign  of  its  existence  met 
with  was  a  skin  brought  me  by  a  Swahili  on  the 
Molo. 

One  night  we  encamped  on  an  "  open  "  where  just 
previously  Lord  Hindlip  had  shot  a  buffalo  bull  whose 
horns  measured,  between  inside  bends,  45  ins.  "We 
saw  nothing  beyond  a  single  bushbuck ;  but  the  grass 
here,  not  having  been  burnt,  was  rank  and  coarse  in  the 
extreme,  most  distasteful  to  game.  The  further  west 
we  went,  the  worse  this  feature  grew — the  rankness  of 
the  grass.  At  the  furthest  points  reached,  it  looked 
as  though  it  had  not  been  burnt  for  centuries,  and 
the  total  absence  of  spoor,  old  or  other,  showed 
that  no  game  frecpiented  that  district.  We  therefore 
turned  back  towards  the  better-burnt  "  opens "  near 
Kishobo,  where  we  had  already  proved  the  presence  of 
buffalo. 

On  these  farthest  opens  grew  lovely  lilies,  "  ever- 
lastings," and  foxgloves — though  these  are  probably  not 
their  correct  names. 

Although  the  unburnt  grass  seemed  to  indicate  a 
total  absence  of  humanity,  even  in  its  lowest  forms,  yet 
on  different  occasions  we  met  with  evidence  bespeaking 
the  proximity  of  savage  neighbours.  Twice  we  found 
the  forest-trail  obstructed  by  trees  purposely  felled 
athwart  it ;  and  twice  we  fell  in  with  native  huts  in 
the  jungle.  More  primitive  human  dwellings  could  not 
be ;  they  consisted  merely  of  withy  boughs  stuck  round 
in  a  circle,  their  supple  tops  bent  across  to  meet  over 
the  centre — wigwam  style.  A  few  leafy  branches  served 
to  cover  in  this  frame — width  6  ft,  height  3|-  ft. 
Also,  while  lying  awaiting  buffalo  at  dusk,  we  both 
heard,  or  thought  we  heard,  human  voices,  and  w^e 
certainly  did  see  the  wreathing  smoke  of  fires.  There 
were  savages  of  some  sort  in  this  otherwise  lifeless 
jungle — presumably  Sotik  or  other  nomad  Wandorobo. 
The  Sotik  tribe,  it  may  be  recalled,  had  broken  out  in 
rebellion  some  few  months  previously,  but  only  made  a 


196 


ON   SAFARI 


poor  show  of  fighting,  and  were  promptly  reduced  to 
submission. 

So  far  this  enterprise  had  not  resulted  in  a  single 
shot  being  fired.  There  yet  remained  the  one  great 
resource  on  which  we  still  relied,  to  wit,  the  full  moon. 
On  returning  to  Kishobo,  we  arranged  this  last  desperate 
effort — whole-night  attacks  on  the  buffalo  by  moonlight. 

We  each  separately  took 
light  tents,  with  a  couple 
of  "boys"  and  a  minimum 
of  necessaries,  and  each  en- 
camped alone  in  gloomy 
forest-corners  that  com- 
manded conveniently  adja- 
cent "  opens." 

While  pitching  my  lonely 
forest- camp  that  afternoon, 
I  noticed  close  by  a  curious, 
sombre-hued  small  bird  with 
tufted  bushy  head  and  long 
black  tail  edged  with  white, 
that  was  quite  unknown  to 
me.  Some  tiny  woodpeckers  shared  my  grove,  and  a 
pair  of  barbets  formed  a  study  in  bright  hues — gold  and 
crimson,  set  off  by  jetty  black.  Less  welcome  neigh- 
bours were  huge  millipedes,  black  and  chestnut,  with 
vicious-looking  jaws.  But  there  was  no  time  to  consider 
minor  evils. 

Confidence  was  not  lacking,  and  hopes  ran  high  ; 
but,  alas  for  this  venture,  heavy  rains  now  set  in,  and 
each  night  purple-black  clouds  overcast  the  moon.  Our 
trusted  auxiliary  failed.  Both  had  similar  experience. 
Within  an  hour  of  sundown  that  first  evenino-  we  ran 
right  into  the  buffalo  close  by — not  fifty  yards  away,  in 
the  open.  But  nothing  even  then  was  visible,  and  the 
beasts  stampeded,  snorting,  in  the  dark.  My  own  diary 
that  night  records  :  "  Lighter  rains  later,  but  still  inky 
dark.  Could  see  nothing,  so  returned  to  camp  at  ten, 
and  had  a  pint  of  Giesler(!).     At  2  a.m.,  thick,  overcast 


A   TINY   WOODPECKER. 

Olive-green  above,  gi-ey  below, 
occiput  bright  crimson. 


THE  MAU   FOREST 


197 


and  raining — spoor  showed  that  a  big  herd  had  passed 
the  bluff  close  by,  apparently  only  a  few  minutes  before  ; 
followed  on  and  amiin  got  close  in — could  hear  them 
grazing  and  grunting,  apparently  w^ithin  fifty  to  eighty 
yards  ;  but  no  chance  to  see,  much  less  shoot.  Towards 
daw^n  fell  in  again,  a  herd  of  seven ;  but  ere  we  over- 
hauled them  the  beasts  had  gained  the  sheltering 
forest." 

That  evening  at  sundown,  a  low  booming  call  close 
by  revived  hope — though  I  feared  it  must  be  cows.    No  ! 


GREAT   GROrXD-HORXBILLS,    ALARMED    BY   A    PASSING   EAGLE. 

these  were  great  ground-hornbills  (Bucorvus  cafer),  big 
birds  like  turkeys,  with  red  pendent  wattles,  strutting 
towards  us.  It  was  curious  to  observe  how  they  squatted 
low  to  earth  when  a  pair  of  Bateleur  eagles  passed  over- 
head on  their  way  to  roost.  A  few  minutes  later  night- 
jars appeared  in  splendid  aerial  gyrations.  These  birds 
((7.  frenatus)  kept  up  their  "  churring  "  all  night,  and 
at  dawn  our  common  British  willow-wren  was  in  half- 
sonsc  on  March  6 — the  same  feeble  ditty  with  which  he 
bids  us  farewell  at  home  before  finally  quitting  British 
shores  towards  the  end  of  August. 

It  irks  to  dwell  on  failures  ;  but  there  occurred  during 
this  period  at   least  six  occasions  when  one  "  turn  of 


198  ON   SAFARI 

luck,"  one  half-liour  of  bright  moonliglit,  might  have 
changed  all  and  given  us  what  we  sought.  No  such  aid 
occurred :  it  was  j)erhaps  kismet  once  more,  and  this 
time  on  the  "  thumbs-down  "  side. 

The  off' chance  offered  by  the  full  moon  was  annihi- 
lated when  her  gentle  light — never  too  clear  for  night- 
shooting — was  obscured  by  murky  storm-clouds,  and  we 
could  no  more. 

The  following  are  my  brother's  impressions  of  this 
venture  : — "  I  regret  now  that  we  did  not  spend  another 
week  or  so  pushing  forward  into  the  Sotik,  although 
I  admit  that,  at  the  time,  it  seemed  a  forlorn 
hope. 

"  When  one  reads  of  buffalo-shooting  in  the  olden 
days,  right  out  in  the  open,  truly  it  astonishes  one  to 
think  how  astutely  the  great  bovines  have  adapted  their 
habit  to  modern  necessity  and  developed  a  secretiveness 
not  naturally  theirs. 

"  Against  this,  I  had  the  services  of  a  native  tracker 
whose  skill  in  woodcraft  was  alone  worth  some  sacrifice 
to  watch.  Through  the  densest  thickets  of  these  tangled 
forests  wherein  buffalo  now  spend  the  livelong  day,  he 
led  me  again  and  again  right  into  the  beasts  all  asleep 
in  their  dark  and  gloomy  stronghold.  AVhat  followed 
each  time  was  a  snort  and  a  mighty  crash — they  had 
gone,  ploughing  a  way  through  bush  and  brake,  and 
never  once  had  1  the  luck  to  see  them. 

"When  the  moon  waxed  full,  we  tried  to  cultivate 
a  closer  acquaintance  on  those  open  glades  of  natural 
pasturage  which  are  of  such  frequent  occurrence  in  these 
forests,  and  on  which  the  buffalo  feed  by  night.  We 
spent  great  part  of  our  nights  watching  these  spots,  and 
a  weird  experience  it  was.  As  darkness  overshadowed 
the  scene,  the  first  peculiarity  that  attracted  attention 
was  a  succession  of  hideous  shrieks,  issuing,  it  seemed, 
from  various  points  of  the  compass.  We  wondered 
what  animal,  or  bird,  could  possibly  be  guilty  of  such 
enormities,  and  were  but  slightly  reassured  on  learning 


THE   MAU   FOKEST 


199 


from  our  tracker  that  the  sounds  emanated  from  Sotik 
Wandorobo — a  tribe  of  forest-dwellers,  one  of  the 
lowest  of  human  types.  We  had  previously  observed 
trees  entirely  stripped  of  bark,  which,  we  were  told, 
these  poor  creatures  had  eaten ;  and  also  found  their 
huts  in  the  forest — small,  conical  structures  of  green 
branches  stuck  into  the  ground,  bent  over,  and  inter- 
laced with  smaller  branches,  hardly  bigger  than  dog- 
kennels.     Each  hut  had  a  slightly  raised  platform  at 


ANOTHER  HORNBILL   {Lophoceros). 


the  further  end  inside ;  so  that  these  wild  men  of  the 
woods  evidently  disapprove  of  sleeping  on  the  bare 
earth. 

"  Although  these  savages  were  aware  of  our  presence 
and  followed  us  throughout  our  nightly  wanderings  (as 
we  discovered  by  their  tracks  covering  ours  on  the  dewy 
grass  at  dawn),  yet  they  in  no  way  molested  us,  nor  did 
we  ever  see  them. 

"  It  was  into  these  solitudes  that  we  penetrated,  each 
with  a  few  followers  and  a  light  tent  apiece,  that  was 
pitched  amidst  foliage  so  rank  as  to  be  invisible  at 
twenty  yards  from  any  point  of  view — never  could  I 
have  found  my  way  back  to  mine  but  for  our  savage 
guides. 


200 


ON   SAFARI 


"  Our  quest  finall}-  failed,  as,  although  shadowy 
forms  of  animals  were  occasionally  distinguished  by  us 
in  the  moonlight,  yet  with  an  overcast  sky  and  constant 
heavy  rain,  it  was  not  possible  to  specify  them.  They 
might  be  cows  or  calves,  we  could  not  tell." 


HORXBILLS  OX   WIXG, 


CHAPTER   XVII 

THE    ATHI   PLAINS 
(l)    FLYING    VISIT    IN"    SEPTEMBER    1904 

The  rolling  downs  known  as  the  Athi  Plains  are 
familiar  to  all  travellers  on  the  Uganda  railway,  and 
I  need  not  stop  to  describe  the  spectacle  of  animal-life 
that  can  be  enjoyed  from  the  carriage  windows  through- 
out a  distance  of  close  upon  150  miles.  Nowhere 
else  on  earth  can  wild  game  be  seen  to  such  advantage, 
in  all  the  luxurv  of  a  corridor-carriao^e. 

It  was  merely  a  flying  visit  that  I  paid  to  the  Athi 
in  1904,  since  only  forty-eight  hours  remained  available 
for  shooting  before  the  homeward-bound  train  was  due  at 
Athi  River  station  ;  and  in  that  short  time  my  object 
was  to  secure  specimens  of  Coke's  hartebeest  and  of  the 
East- African  blue  wildebeest  or  white-bearded  onu. 

Leaving  Nairobi  at  3  p.m.  (September  17),  and  being 
mounted  on  a  riding-mule,  we  covered  that  evening 
more  than  half  of  the  nineteen  miles  that  separate  the 
tin  capital  from  Athi  River.  On  this  march  many 
hartebeests  were  seen,  but  all  hopelessly  wild,  and  the 
half-day  closed  blank. 

Starting  again  before  dawn,  and  riding  in  advance 
of  the  safari,  I  descried  in  the  half-light  some  400 
yards  ahead  an  ostrich  that  certainly  had  not  been  in 
sight  five  seconds  before.  This  seemed  inexplicable, 
but  on  riding  to  the  spot,  there  lay  eleven  huge  eggs 
scattered  at  random  over  a  bare  spot  from  which  the 
grass  had  been  roughly  scratched  away.  Four  selected 
specimens  furnished   excellent  omelettes  for  my  whole 

201 


202  ON   SAFARI 

retinue  I  Two  otlier  ostrich  nests  found  that  year  by- 
friends  contained  as  many  as  twenty-seven  and  thirty- 
four  eggs  respectively.  The  cock  ostrich,  being  Uack 
and  conspicuous,  sits  on  the  eggs  by  night  only,  the 
brown  invisible  hen  taking  the  post  of  danger  by  day. 

As  light  strengthened  the  wide  prairies  were  seen  to 
swarm  w^ith  game,  chiefly  zebras,  gazelles  and  harte- 
beests — the  latter  fearfully  wild  ;  yet  even  at  these  great 
distances  the  striking  difference  in  the  form  of  their 
horns  from  those  of  B.  neumcmni  was  perfectly  distin- 
guishable. The  latter  diverge  at  an  acute  angle  re- 
sembling the  letter  V,  while  those  of  B.  col-ei  spread  out 

laterally  before  ascending  like  two  capital  L's —  I I — • 

the  second  reversed. 

All  the  hartebeests  carry  the  head  in  a  rigid  upright 
position — that  is,  the  long  face,  as  viewed  in  profile,  is 
held  almost  at  a  right  angle  with  the  earth ;  and  the 
curious  effect  is  accentuated  (especially  in  B.  jacksoni) 
by  the  set  of  the  horns,  which,  rising  fi^om  long  pedicles 
in  the  same  vertical  plane,  prolong  the  already  ex- 
travagant length  of  the  head. 

The  game  being  utterly  inaccessible  and  my  own 
time  so  limited,  I  resorted  to  taking  some  rather  reckless 
shots.  With  shame  I  admit  firing  that  morning  more 
cartridges  than  on  any  other  clay  in  Africa.  In  the 
result,  I  "fluked"  a  bull  with  a  ball  between  the  eyes, 
and  the  next  shot  gave  me  a  second — both  at  extreme 
ranges.  Though  big  bulls,  neither  carried  a  first-rate 
head. 

From  the  spot  where  No.  2  fell  on  the  ridge  of  a 
rocky  bluff  we  looked  down  upon  the  Athi  River,  its 
course  indicated  by  belts  of  brushwood  and  tall  forest- 
trees  that  fringe  the  banks.  Spying  from  here,  we  made 
out  a  group  of  ten  wildebeests,  standing  listless  in  a 
green  corrie  a  mile  away ;  but  with  a  single  old  bull 
alert  as  sentry.  These  also  proved  wilder  than  wild,  and 
stalking  j)ractically  impossible.  Though  undulated,  the 
sloping  gradients  of  this  veld  are  altogether  too  spacious, 
the  angles   too   gentle,  to   afford   any  real    advantage. 


THE  ATHI   PLAINS 


203 


After  many  laborious  attempts — all  in  vain — as  a  last 
resource  we  tried  an  appeal  to  the  known  curiosity 
of  the  gnu.  As  the  string  of  great  shaggy  beasts 
went  prancing  and  capering  along  a  slope  500  yards 
away,  Hamisi  and  I  threw  ourselves  down  flat  on  the 
grass  just  before  the  animals  took  a  slight  fold  in  the 


THE   SENTRY — WHITE-BEARDED   GNUS. 


hill-face.  We  could  then  barely  see  their  backs  and 
wildly- whirling  tails  as  they  scampered  along,  half- 
hidden  in  the  hollow  beyond.  The  ruse,  however,  so 
far  succeeded  that  the  troop,  pausing  in  mid -career, 
wheeled  half  round,  dashed  up  the  intervening  slope 
and  pulled  up,  facing  us,  on  the  crest. 

They  now  presented  a  fair  shot  at  300  to  350  yards; 
but  Nemesis  stood  at  my  elbow,  exacting  the  full  price 


for   that   random   shooting   of  the   morning. 


It   had 


204  ON   SAFAEI 

demoralised  me,  and  now  my  "  sighting  "  was  too  liigli, 
and  the  ball  passed  harmless  overhead.  Off  scampered 
those  weird  wildebeests,  their  bucking  heads  and  whirl- 
ing tails  half  seen  throuo-h  clouds  of  dust.  I  watched 
them  for  miles,  and  knew  that  mv  star  had  set.  In  the 
broiling  noontide  heat,  I  walked  down  to  our  camp  on 
the  Athi. 

Under  the  shade  by  the  river  stood  four  waterbuck 
— the  first  of  the  white-ringed  species  {Ellipsiprymnus) 
that  I  had  then  seen  in  East  Africa.  These  1  left  severely 
alone,  having  fine  examples  shot  in  the  Transvaal.  There 
was  one  bull  among  them,  but  his  head  was  poor,  as  are 
those  of  all  his  kind  in  Equatoria.  For  the  30-in.  heads 
of  this  you  must  go  to  the  tropic  of  Capricorn.  Here, 
in  East  Africa,  Cohns  defassa  is  the  master-form. 

Work  as  I  would  that  evening — and  I  spared  neither 
my  men  nor  myself — I  could  not  retrieve  the  bungle  of 
the  morning ;  for,  amidst  abundant  game,  not  a  single 
wildebeest  could  we  descry.  My  ten  friends  had 
evidently  cleared  out  of  the  country,  and  no  others 
remained  within  our  radius. 

Throughout  these  Athi  Plains,  and  in  wide  areas  of 
the  Eift  Valley,  one  notices  that  where  the  greatest 
abundance  of  game  is  seen,  there  exists,  at  this  season 
(August — September),  scarce  a  vestige  of  grass  or 
verdure.  Yet,  hard  by,  lie  stretches  of  coarse  sour 
grass  totally  neglected  and  uneaten,  and  where  no  game 
can  be  seen.  This  latter  sort  of  grass,  with  its  flowering 
heads,  resembles  a  crop  of  wild  oats.  Its  special  utility 
is  not  obvious,  and  it  is  hard  work  walking  through  it. 
The  contrast  is  remarkable.  The  sweetness  and  rich 
equality  of  the  other  kind  of  grass  is  attested  by  the 
closeness  with  which  it  has,  at  this  season,  been  cropped 
by  the  game.  On  reaching  spots  where  great  herds  had 
been  grazing,  one  marvels  what  they  had  found  to  eat 
on  them.  There  is  but  naked  earth,  pulverised  by  a 
thousand  hoofs. 

Towards  sunset  I  succeeded  in  getting  two  balls  into 
quite  the  best  hartebeest  bull  I  had  yet  seen.     Darkness 


THE   ATHI   PLAINS 


205 


alone  prevented  our  securing  liim  tliat  night,  and  when 
we  did  recover  the  trophy  at  daybreak — guided  thereto  by 
circling  marabous — the  meat  had  already  been  devoured 
by  a  lion,  whose  pugs  were  distinct  on  the  soft  soil. 
Not  a  morsel  remained  to  reward  the  thirty  or  forty 
vultures  that  sat  around.  Two  hyenas  watched  their 
own  interests  from  a  high  ridge  beyond. 

Before  leaving  camp  on  this,  my  last  morning,  I  had 


CLEARED   our, 


sent  out  scouts  in  three  directions  to  spy  for  wildebeest, 
with  instructions  to  report  to  me  here  (by  the  dead 
hartebeest)  at  the  earliest  possible  moment.  While  we 
were  yet  busy  with  the  kongoni,  one  of  these  men 
arrived  with  the  news  that  a  herd  of  twenty  or  thirty 
"  Nyumbo  "  (wildebeest)  were  grazing  one  hour  s  walk  to 
the  southward.  Mounting  the  mule,  I  set  off  at  once  in 
the  direction  indicated.  This  was  the  first  time  I  had 
ridden  during  this  whole  expedition,  and,  on  coming 
among  game,  I  at  once  noticed  (1)  that  game  took  less 
notice  of  a  mounted  man  than  of  a  hunter  on  foot, 
and  (2)  that  distance-judgment  was  simpler  and  more 


206  ON   SAFAEI 

accurate  from  the  vantage -lieight  of  the  saddle.  I  had 
scarce  ridden  a  mile  than  I  found  myself  nearer  far  to 
two  first-rate  hartebeest  bulls  than  I  had  ever  been  in  all 
my  strenuous  hunting  on  foot  !  They  stood  with  heads 
up,  watching  me,  but  otherwise  showing  no  signs  of 
alarm.  On  arriving  at  a  range  judged  (quite  accurately) 
to  be  125  yards,  I  slipped  from  the  saddle  and  dropped 
both  bulls  with  a  single  ball  apiece.  The  second 
presently  regained  his  legs,  and,  though  receiving  another 
bullet,  moved  slowly  off  some  500  yards,  where  he  lay 
down.  I  could  just  see  his  angular  bracket-shaped 
horns  over  a  rise  in  the  ground  from  near  where  we 
stood,  so  decided  to  leave  him  to  stiffen  while  we 
oif-skinned  the  first. 

In  case  it  may  appear  cruel  to  leave  an  animal  thus 
in  pain,  I  reply  that  this  was  the  safest  plan  to  secure 
him,  and  thus  end  his  pain.  To  chase  a  newly-w^ouncled 
beast  hot-foot  is  a  sure  way  to  lose  him. 

With  chagrin  we  observed  half-an-hour  later  that 
twelve  fresh  animals  had  joined  the  wounded  one,  and 
that  all  thirteen  were  on  foot.  Hamisi's  keen  eye, 
however,  saved  the  situation,  for  he  never  lost  sight  of 
the  dark  splash  on  the  wounded  bull's  pale-coloured 
quarters,  and  presently  I  finished  him  wdth  a  ball  in  the 
neck  at  180  yards.  The  three  bulls  secured  this  morning 
were  all  first-rate  specimens  of  Buhalis  cokei,  their  horns 
taping  l7f,  17^  and  16f  ins.  respectively.  The  span 
varied  from  11  to  13  ins.,  and  the  basal  circumference 
8f  to  9  ins.  Weight  estimated  at  300  to  350  lbs. 
apiece. 

The  hour  was  now  7.45,  so,  leaving  some  "boys" 
to  bring  in  the  meat  and  skins,  I  rode  on  towards  the 
w^ildebeests,  still  two  miles  distant.  Presently  we  sighted 
them,  feeding  beyond  a  wide  grassy  hollow.  But  wdiat 
was  my  disappointment  to  find,  on  advancing,- that  in 
that  hollow  there  ran  the  Uganda  railway,  which  marks, 
at  this  point,  the  boundary  of  the  Game-Eeserve,  and  all 
beyond  was  sacred  !  For  a  moment  I  admit  having 
regarded  the  situation  with  mixed  ideas  that  may  be 


THE   ATHI   PLAINS  207 

imacrined.  A  minute's  reflection  and  the  law-aljidinsf 
tradition  prevailed  ;  besides,  am  I  not  a  member  of  the 
Society  for  the  Preservation  of  the  Fauna  of  the 
Empire  ?  which  (despite  the  handicap  of  a  long-drawn 
title)  w^orks  hard  to  safeguard  threatened  creatures  and 
to  secure  the  provision  of  just  such  sanctuaries  as  that 
which  now  confronted  me  and  my  keenest  aspirations. 

After  a  prolonged  survey  with  the  binoculars,  I  left 
the  gnus  in  peace,  but  with  the  determination  to  return 
another  year  to  the  beautiful  plains  of  the  Athi  River. 
With  my  last  shot  in  Africa  I  killed  a  Thomson's 
oazelle,  and  reached  Athi  River  station  in  time  to  clean 
and  pack  rifles  and  enjoy  a  last  al  fresco  breakfast  ere 
the  12.30  train  bore  me  coastwards.  I  had  a  travelling 
companion  as  far  as  Kiu  in  Mr.  J.  Donald,  w^iom  we  had 

met  six  wrecks  earlier.     D had  just  secured  a  lion  on 

the  Athi  under  the  following  circumstances  : — Hearing  a 
roar  before  dawn,  he  set  out  at  once,  and  after  daybreak 
heard  it  again.  The  lion  was  half-a-mile  away,  moving 
across  the  plain.  On  reaching  an  ant-hill,  whence  he 
hoped  to  find  the  beast  within  shot,  as  a  precautionary 

measure  D first  peeped  round  the  shoulder  of  the 

mound,  and  there,  close  at  hand,  espied  the  lion  crouch- 
ing towards  him — each,  in  fact,  stalking  the  other.  The 
lion  had  mistaken  the  creeping  figure  of  a  man  for  some 
low-moving  game — probably  a  w^art-hog.  A  "SOS  bullet 
rather  below  the  eyes  settled  the  cpiestion. 

Leaving  Mombasa  on  September  22  by  the  German 
East- Africa  Line  s.s.  Kanzler,  and  transhipping  to  the 
P.  and  0.  Marmora  at  Aden,  I  reached  home,  and  was 
salmon-fishing  in  Northumberland  just  three  weeks  after 
firing  my  last  shot  in  Ecpiatorial  Africa. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

A   MONTH   ON  THE  ATHI   RIYER 

(ll)    IN    JANUARY    AND    FEBRUARY    1906 

Fifteen  months  later,  namely,  towards  the  Christmas 
of  1905,  we  returned  to  East  Africa,  and  this  year  com- 
menced our  operations  on  the  Athi  Plains.  Riding  out 
from  Nairobi,  we  camped  the  first  evening  at  "  Nine- 
Mile  Spruit,"  where  snipe  were  abundant,  also  big  fran- 
colin  [Scolopax  nigripennis  and  Francolinus  uluensis)  ; 

and   AV fired  the  first  shot  of  the   expedition  at 

pelicans.  We  reached  the  Athi  River,  above  "  Lone- 
Tree,"  the  following  day. 

Although  the  East- African  brindled  gnu,  or  wdiite- 
bearded  wildebeest  {Connochoetes  cdhojuhatus),  still 
formed  one  main  objective,  yet  meanwhile  our  self-con- 
fidence— or  pride,  whichever  it  were — had  induced  us 
to  place  the  lion  in  the  forefront  of  our  programme. 
The  lioness  we  had  already  slain  :  the  lion  now  formed 
our  first  ambition. 

The  higher  plateaux  of  the  Athi  Plains  usually  drop 
towards  the  lower  levels  by  the  river  in  a  series  of  broken 
steps ;  but  this  drop,  at  the  point  we  had  selected,  is 
confined  to  a  single  escarpment,  fairly  abrupt  and  200 
to  300  ft.  in  height.  At  intervals  of  a  mile  or  tw^o,  the 
face  of  this  escarpment  is  furrowed  transversely  by  deep 
and  narrow  ravines,  which  during  the  rains  form  water- 
courses drainino;  the  hio;her  around ,  and  which  also 
afford  at  that  season,  a  favourite  shelter  for  lions. 

Four  or  five  such  ravines  lay  within  reach  of  our 
present  camjD,  while  many  more  were  accessible  by  shifting 
its  position  along  the  river. 

Now,  although  lions  abound  on  the  Athi,  yet  neither 

208 


THE  ATHI   EIVER  209 

tliere  nor  anywhere  else  is  the  lion  an  easy  prize — quite 
the  reverse.  The  element  of  luck  enters  large.  Both 
in  South  and  East  Africa  men  may  spend  years  and  yet 
never  chance  to  see,  much  less  to  shoot,  a  lion.  A  new- 
comer, on  the  other  hand,  may  fall  in  with  a  "  soft " 
chance  in  his  first  week.  There  is  here  a  system  by  which 
success  may  be  made  fairly  secure,  to  which  I  refer  later. 

The  first  ravine  we  tried  held  a  lion.  We  two  were 
in  ambush  at  its  mouth,  and  had  sent  some  twenty-five 
beaters  round  the  flank  with  specific  instructions  to  go 
in  at  the  extreme  head  of  the  gorge.  Instead,  they  had 
commenced  to  enter  when  only  half-way  up.  From  my 
position  (we  were  commanding  the  outlet  on  opposite 
sides)  I  saw  this  lazy  move,  and  at  once  checked  it. 
The  mischief,  however,  was  done.  The  lion  lay  not  far 
below  the  head  of  the  gorge,  and,  although  he  remained 
quiescent  till  the  beaters  had  arrived  within  100  yards, 
he  had  fully  appreciated  the  previous  false  move,  and, 
instead  of  taking  the  direct  course  down  the  glen,  he 
bounded  up  the  steep  bank  on  the  south  and  gained  the 
table-land  above. 

A  mounted  Somali  hunter,  whom  I  had  placed  behind 
on  the  chance  of  his  being  able  to  ride  the  lion  to  a  stand, 
gave  him  a  bit  of  a  run,  but  the  ground  was  bad  and 
the  start  too  great. 

After  this  failure  we  always  went  one  gun  with  the 
beaters — or,  rather,  100  yards  in  advance — the  other 
being  posted  at  the  outlet  of  each  gorge. 

It  was  exciting  work  for  the  advanced  gun,  standing 

in  front  of  each  dense  clump  of  bush,  or  tumbled  pile  of 

rocks — often  when  two  such  holts  were  being  beaten  at 

once — while  the  crowd  of  yelling  savages  swarmed  in  from 

above  or  behind,  and  showers  of  stones  came  hurtling 

and  crashing  downwards  through  the  covert.     Many  of 

these  ravines,  moreover,  had  a  most  "lionous"  smell, 

which  constantly  induced  a  belief  that  the  king  of  beasts 

was  close  by.     But  this  scent  was  a  deception,  arising 

from  an  aromatic  shrub. 

,    During   three  weeks  spent  on  the  Athi  we   drove 

p 


210  ON   SAFARI 

dozens  of  these  ravines,  but,  except  on  that  first  drive 
of  all,  never  again  did  we  see  the  coveted  beast  until  the 

very  last.    Then  a  lioness  bounding  up  in  front  of  W 

(who  was  with  the  beaters),  disappeared  amid  bush-clad 
rocks,  and,  as  she  never  emerged  on  the  lower  side,  where 
I  awaited  her,  had  evidently  gone  to  ground  among  the 
rocks,  whence  we  failed  to  dislodge  her. 

We  put  up,  of  course,  plenty  of  other  game,  such  as 
Chanler's  reedbuck,  duiker,  dikdik,  steinbuck  and  pig. 
On  one  occasion,  from  some  huge  pinnacled  rocks,  choked 
with  heavy  brushwood,  which  towered  up,  island-like,  in 
the  neck  of  a  ravine,  sprang  seven  hyenas  within  fifty 
5"ards.  For  a  moment,  I  thought  the  great  half-seen 
brutes  were  lions  at  last — and  rather  too  many  all  at 
once.     One  of  these  rolled  over  to  a  Paradox  bullet,  and 

at  the  mouth  of  the  gorge  W made  a  brilliant  shot 

at  a  second,  killing  one  of  a  string  of  five  that  filed  past 
at  well  over  300  yards.  His  first  shot  had  struck  the 
ground  behind,  but,  by  correcting  the  forward  allowance, 
the  second  got  well  home. 

Twice  during  these  lion-drives  we  met  with  porcu- 
pines. The  first,  a  male,  was  caught  alive  in  a  bush- 
filled  donga  by  Mabruki — the  same  ]\Iabruki  who  after- 
wards proved  a  source  of  danger,  but  who  was  always 
wondrous  expert  in  this  way  ;  the  second,  though  com- 
pletely surrounded,  managed  to  dodge  a  dozen  active 
natives,  and,  by  a  series  of  bounds,  and  with  its  quills 
all  rattling;,  gained  refug-e  in  a  crevice  of  rock.  The 
stomach  of  that  secured  contained  grass,  seeds  and  other 
vegetable-matter  only. 

Guinea-fowl  and  francolins  sped  down  the  glens  like 
driven  blackcock,  and  curious  nightjars  (Cosmetornis 
vexillarius,  the  pennant-winged  nightjar)  fiicked  up 
and  dived  back  among  the  scrub,  while  our  common 
Eng-lish  swallows  filled  the  air.  These  were  constant 
companions,  snapping  up,  under  our  lee,  the  insects 
disturbed  by  the  beaters.  Other  small  British  birds 
observed  on  the  equator  in  January  included  wlieatear, 
tree-pipit,  yellow  and  grey  wagtails. 


THE   ATHI   EIVER 


211 


Notable  also  were  the  great  eagle-owls  that  came 
sailing  silently  down  the  glen  before  the  beaters — great 
mottled  fellows,  grey  and  black  {Bubo  maculosus),  that 
perched  on  some  boulder,  and  sat  there  snapping  and 
seemingly  inclined  to  resent  the  intrusion  on  discovering 
one  close  by.     Either  these  owls  or  the  still  bigger  and 


PENNANT-WINGED   NIGHTJAR. 


very  handsome  Buho  lacteus  were  responsible  for  most 
unearthly  "  hootings  "  which  we  heard  at  times,  startling 
the  midnight  echoes.  There  were  also  two  kinds  of 
eagles  :  the  larger,  light-breasted  and  broad-tailed,  with 
short  rounded  wings,  was  the  crowned  hawk-eagle 
(Spizaetus  coronatus),  a  fierce  and  powerful  species  that 
made  magnificent  stoops  after  our  startled  guinea-fowl — 
these,  however,  escaping  by  tumbling  pell-mell  among 
the  scrub,  the  eagle  buoyantly  sweeping  upwards  with  a 
little  wild  cry  of  vexation.  The  actual  "stoop"  was  a 
fine  sight — the  v/iugs  being  gradually  drawn  in  at  the 
shoulder  till  the  great  bird  resembled  an  arrow-head,  and 


212 


ON   SAFARI 


one  heard  the  rush  of  air  at  a  quarter-mile  (see  p.  224). 
This  eas^le,  on  seeino'  its  orioinal  aim  to  be  untrue,  had 
the  power  instantly  to  check  its  on-rnsh ;  then,  after 
poising  a  second,  to  renew  the  attack  on  a  different 
line.  In  Somaliland,  our  hunters  told  us,  this  eagle 
kills  their  goats,  and  also  attacks  young  antelopes  and 


n : 


(r.\0H 


LOST   BY  A   LENGTH.      HAWK-EAGLE  A>"D   GUINEA-FOWL. 


gazelles.  One  day,  while  sheltering  in  a  cave  from 
the  noontide  heat,  a  pair  of  dark  chocolate-coloured 
eagles,  with  conspicuous  white  secondaries,  after  wheeling 
overhead,  uttering  piercing  shrieks,  alighted  on  the  crag 
opposite,  not  eighty  yards  away,  and  I  enjoyed  watching 
them  vis-d-vis  for  nearly  an  hour.  They  had  black 
occipital  crests  cj^uite  a  foot  long,  which  lifted  and  waved 
in  the  breeze.  These  were  Lophoaetus  occipitalis,  the 
black-crested  hawk-eaerle. 

One  is  apt  to  find  strange  neighbours  during  that 


THE   ATHI   RIVER 


213 


midday  siesta  on  the  veld — some  quite  undesirable,  as 
scorpions  and  great  hook-clawed  millipedes  half-a-foot 
long  ;  others  curious,  as  the  mantis,  infinite  stick-insects, 
rhinoceros  beetles,  and  assorted 
Coleoptera  in  various  sizes,  with 
ants  and  hairy  spiders  and  other 
c[uaint  forms.  They  may  be  harm- 
less— or  not ;  but,  being  unknown, 
are  apt  to  cause  a  passing  c[ualni 
when  discovered  on  one's  person. 
For  instance,  it  must  give  a  chill 
suddenly  to  meet  the  cold  green 
eye  of  a  great  lizard  steadfastly 
surveying  one  from  a  crevice  not 
a  foot  away.  One  day,  in  a  grove 
by  the  Athi,  a  reiterated  snap, 
snap,  arrested  attention,  and  there, 
pressed    upright    against   a    grey 


■VIS-A-VIS. 


trunk,  sat   the  'tiny  grey  owl  whose 
portrait  is  here  rudely  reproduced. 

Hen-harriers,  both  the  blue  males 
and  "  ring- tails,"  quartered  the  open 
veld  in  pairs,  and  on  burnt  ground 
crowds  of  white  storks  feasted  on 
singed  grasshoppers  and  locusts.  With 
them  were  others,  smaller  and  of  darker 
plumage,  that  I  at  first  took  to  be 
black  storks.  They  were,  however, 
Ciconia  ahdimii.  Black  kites  {Milvus 
korschun)  abounded  up  to  mid- 
February,  when  they  withdrew,  leav- 
ing only  their  yellow-billed  cousin, 
M.  wgyptiacus,  to  scavenge  around 
our  camps. 

The  driest  arid  plain  formed  a 
for  four  waders,  to  wit — the  Asiatic 
ringed  plover,  dunlin  and  pratincole. 
The  last-named  in  bands  of  thirty  or  forty  would 
spring  close    by,  and,   after  a  short   flight,   all   plump 


SCOPS   CAPEXSIS. 

winter    home 
dotterel,    the 


214  ON   SAFARI 

down  together  among  the  wiry  grass.  I  was  dis- 
appointed in  not  meeting  with  coursers — birds  I  have 
never  seen,  and  of  which  several  species  exist  here. 
Larks  were  a  consjDicuous  genus,  and  one  small  group 
quite  new  to  me — the  bush-larks  [Mirafra),  small  and 
thick-set,  with  short  rounded  wings.  On  February  4 
I  found  a  nest  of  one  of  these,  a  rufous-winged  little 
bird,  probably  M.  athi,  containing  a  newly-hatched 
chick.  It  was  on  bare  ground,  slightly  sheltered  by  a 
low  rock.  The  secretary-bird  we  observed  on  various 
occasions;  but  these,  as  well  as  bustards,  cranes,  etc., 
have,  I  think,  already  been  mentioned. 

A  fortnight's  hard  work  having  failed  to  produce  so 
much  as  even  the  sight  of  another  lion,  we  decided  to 
try  fresh  ground. 

East  of  the  Athi  rise  the  mountain-ranges  of  Lukenia 
with  numerous  outlying  koppies — most  "lionous"  spots, 
with  splendid  shaded  caves,  many  of  these  showing 
ample  evidence  (in  tawny  hair,  etc.)  of  quite  recent 
occupation.  Lions  lie  up  by  day,  not  in  the  cold  re- 
cesses of  these  caverns,  but  quite  openly  beneath  over- 
hanging shelves  of  rock  outside  them.  Where  these 
"  beds"  were  exposed  to  the  full  rays  of  the  afternoon 
sun,  a  second  lair  would  always  be  found  a  few  yards 
away — round  some  projecting  angle  that  afforded  shelter 
from  meridian  heat.  There  were  rarely  any  bones  about 
these  dens — save  indeed  those  of  mice,  relics  of  owls 
and  kestrels  that  also  frequent  the  rocks.  In  one  lion- 
cave  grew  a  wild  fig-tree. 

We  worked  all  these  koppies  for  miles  along  the 
Lukenia  Range,  sometimes  stalking  particular  lairs  the 
positions  of  which  were  known,  at  others  "driving" 
some  great  tumbled  pile  of  rocks,  or  trying  by  grass-fires 
to  smoke  out  secretive  denizens.  We  put  out  jackals 
and  numberless  hyrax,  but  never  a  lion.  Sometimes 
when  one  realised  that  a  beast  was  coming  out  by  the 
exit  where  one  held  guard,  it  was  almost  a  relief  to 
observe  that  it  tvas  "  only  a  jackal  "  I 


>  3  >,     3  3     >  ) 

>  J  3%    3  >       3      1 
3          3  3    ','  3  J   , 

3  3  3  3  3  3  3 


)  3  33331 

3   3  3  3      3' 

3,3,  33'' 


BULTIXG    LIOXS. 

'Only  a  Jackal." 


THE   AUTHUK   OX    "GOLDFINCH. 


THE   ATHI    RIVER  215 

Early  in  February — having  meanwhile  completed  an 
expedition  to  the  Stony  Athi — we  returned  to  the  main 
river  and  tried  afresh  the  w^hole  of  the  lion-ravines  and 
koppies,  including  many  new  spots  ;  but  all  again  proved 
blank. 

Regarded  purely  as  lion-hunters,  we  had  failed,  for 
not  a  single  shot  had  been  fired.  But  intense  interest 
never  flagged,  and  experiences  had  been  gained  as  regards 
the  haunts  and  habits  of  lions  that  both  explain  our 
failure  and  may  benefit  future  efibrts. 

It  is  during  the  rains  that  lions  seek  the  shelter 
of  the  ravines  or  rocks  described.  In  November  and 
December,  several  lions  had  been  shot  here  by  precisely 
similar  operations.  At  that  season  one  has,  of  course, 
to  take  some  slight  risk  of  fever ;  but  that  is  the  time 
to  get  lions  in  these  ravines.  We,  timing  our  arrival 
for  Christmas  (when  rains  cease),  were  too  late,  that  is, 
for  lion.  For  that  animal  during  the  dry  season  needs 
no  shelter,  and  is  content  to  lie  up  by  day  in  open  grass 
or  any  slight  covert  the  prairie  may  afi'ord — such  as  the 
reed-beds,  where  heavy  canes  afi'ord  shade  from  the  sun 
and  are  then  dry  beneath.^ 

1  Another  English  sportsman,  shooting  close  by  (Lieutenant 
Black,  5th  Dragoon  C4uarcls),  had  precisely  similar  experience,  never 
seeing  a  lion  until  after  leaving  the  Athi  and  on  his  homeward 
march  to  Nairobi,  when  on  passing  qixite  a  small  reed-bed,  he  sent  a 
dozen  "  boys  "  round  to  drive.  A  lioness  bolted  at  once  ;  but  heai'ing 
something  else  inside  he  waited,  and  was  rewarded  by  securing  a 
lion  at  the  eleventh  hour. 

A  year  later,  Mr.  (now  Capt.)  Black  wrote  me  as  follows,  from 
Bloemfontein — 

"I  did  not  see  even  a  track  of  elephants  this  year,  but  came  on 
several  lions;  first  two,  which,  though  I  got  within  100  yards, 
completely  defeated  me.  Then  six,  stalking  a  herd  of  zebra  on  the 
Athi  Kiver,  when  I  got  a  lion  and  a  lioness  out  of  the  troop.  Next, 
on  Kapiti  Plains,  I  came  across  five  lionesses  with  cubs.  I  drove 
them  away  from  the  cubs,  which  they  left,  and  for  ten  minutes  or 
so  all  five  lionesses  kept  walking  away  from  me  at  about  400  yards. 
Then,  all  of  a  sudden,  three  of  them  whipped  round  and  fairly 
charged.  I  gave  them  rapid  magazine  tire,  which  stopped  them 
when  within  some  thirty  yards ;  but  although  I  hit  two  badly,  I 
only  picked  up  one,  the  other  two  then  retreating,  much  to  my 


216  ON   SAFARI 

Tlie  perception  of  this  radical  error  in  our  tactics 
first  dawned  upon  us  on  meeting  with  a  man  (Mr.  Hill) 
who  was  engaged  riding  down  young  ostriches,  for  the 
purpose  of  stocking  an  ostrich-farm.  Lions,  he  told  us, 
were  a  serious  nuisance  in  his  occupation  :  since  almost 
daily  he  had  run  into  them  on  the  open  veld.  Some- 
times they  retired  peacefully ;  others  resented  being 
disturbed,  and,  carrying  no  weapon  but  a  revolver,  he 
had  to  c[uit  as  well  as  might  be.  This  "riding  out" 
ostriches,  by  the  way,  is  about  as  hot  a  job  as  white 
man   (originally  white,   since   no  trace   of  that  colour 

survived   on    H )   can    undertake.     The  process    of 

tiring-out  a  young  ostrich,  though  scarce  exceeding  a 
turkey  in  bulk,  occupies  well-nigh  a  whole  day's  hard 
riding  ;  and  when,  in  addition,  the  ostrich-hunter  has, 
perhaps  twice  a  week,  to  outride  a  charging  lion,  the 
avocation  may  be  described  as  strenuous. 

The  incident  noted  j^oints  a  clear  clue  to  assuring 
success  in  lion-hunting  during  the  dry  season.  To  a 
man  on  foot,  on  such  limitless  veld,  the  chance  is  all 
but  hopeless  :  to  a  mounted  hunter  that  chance  expands 
indefinitely.  By  riding  far  and  wide  each  dawn — or, 
still  more  cjuickly,  by  sending  out  mounted  Somalis  in 
various  directions — lions  will,  sooner  or  later,  be  descried 
returning  to  their  diurnal  lairs ;  or  failing  that,  dis- 
covered lying  therein.  Then,  in  either  case,  or  however 
found,  they  can  be  "  held-up  "  by  skilled  riding — not,  it 
is  true,  without  risk  or  excitins;  interludes  durino-  which 
hunter  and  hunted  alternately  exchange  roles. 

So  soon  as  a  lion,  or  lions,  find  that  the  pursuing 
horseman  has  the  speed  of  them,  but  yet  refuses  to 
close ;  also  that,  in  turn,  they  are  themselves  unable  to 
overhaul  the  flying  pony,  they  will  deliberately  halt, 
either  lying  down  in  the  grass,  or  sitting  on  their 
haunches  like  so  many  huge  dogs.  They  then  present 
a  target  for  the  rifle  ;  but  necessarily  distant,  since  there 

relief.  It  was  a  near  thing,  and  I  can't  understand  their  funking  it 
at  thirty  yards  after  charging  over  300.  My  two  gun-bearers  (a 
Somali  and  a  Makumba)  both  stood  by  and  loaded  for  me." 


>  5      5  J       J      >  >  ,  )  .   J   > 


t  r    •"     f  €' 


THE  ATHI   RIVER  217 

is  obvious  danger  in  going  in  witliin,  say,  200  yards — 
for  a  lion  has  a  fine  turn  of  speed  for  a  short  distance. 
Nor  will  it  be  a  simple  shot,  for  hard  riding  will  not 
have  steadied  the  hand  for  fine  shooting  at  long  range. 

Clearly,  useful  shooting-ponies  are  a  first  essential, 
when  the  least  delay  in  remounting  must  involve  disaster; 
the  pursuit  also  presupposes  a  degree  of  skill  in  horse- 
manship which,  alas,  in  our  own  case  was  utterly 
lackina;. 

A  yet  more  scientific  development  of  hunting-craft 
enables  the  presence  of  lions  far  away  to  be  detected  by 
the  movements  or  position  of  the  game  on  the  plains. 
Thus  a  wide  gap  seen  among  game  otherwise  distributed 
regularly,  is  deserving  of  attention.  This  may,  it  is 
true,  be  merely  accidental — more  probably  not ;  possibly 
the  gap  may  be  caused  by  some  hyenas  finishing  a 
carrion  meal.  But  it  is  always  worth  ascertaining  if  a 
broad  vacant  space  be  not  cleared  by  the  tell-tale  scent 
of  lions  lying  up  to  the  windward  thereof^ 

There  is  of  course  abundance  of  other  game,  besides 
lions,  on  the  Atlii.  We  observed  waterbuck,  for  example, 
coming  out  to  feed  every  morning  at  dawn  on  the  open 
veld  adjoining  the  river.  These  were  the  common  "  ring- 
tailed  "  waterbuck,  and  one  bull  in  particular  appeared  to 

carry  cjuite  a  handsome  head  ;  but  when  shot  by  W 

his  horns  only  taped  22 j  ins.,  by  8|-  ins.  in  basal  cir- 
cumference, and  12  ins.  between  tips.  In  East  Africa 
this  fine  antelope  never  reaches  the  dimensions  attained 
further  south. 

It  was  noteworthy  that  during  the  first  half  of  January 
we  saw  here  neither  zebra  nor  wildebeest — usually  so 
extremely  abundant.  But  on  January  20  a  few  zebras 
appeared  ;  several  troops  showed  up  on  the  following 
day,  and  after  that  date  they  became  numerous.  The 
first    wildebeest — two    old    bulls — were    observed    on 

^  So  successful  is  our  friend  Mr.  C.  B.  Perceval,  Game-ranger 
of  British  East  Africa,  in  thus  reading  Nature's  signs,  that  sundry 
native  hunters  assert  that  he  can  "  see  lions  "  when  lying  asleep  in 
the  grass  at  six  or  seven  miles  ! 


218 


ON   SAFARI 


January  22,  but  it  was  some  days  before  we  saw  any 
more.     By  the  end  of  the  month,  however,  fresh  troops 


'i^ 


^t^iSv^lfr' 


A    TROPICAL    POOL    OM    ATHI    KIVER. 
Note  the  hanging  nests  of  weavers. 


were   coming   in  daily — all,   like  the  zebras,  from  the 
southward. 

Our  main  camp  lay  between  the  escarpment  afore- 
said and  the  river.     Behind  it  arose  that  abrupt  slope, 


THE   ATHI   EIVER  219 

pierced,  within  a  mile,  by  the  nearest  of  the  frowning 
lion-ravines ;  while  close  in  front  dawclled  the  sluggish 
Athi,  Its  banks,  elsewhere  open,  here  merged  in  forest- 
belts,  and  a  deep  pool  below  the  camp  was  embowered 
in  dense  scrub,  fringed  outside  with  trees.  This  weird 
pool  abounded  in  tropical  scenes.  Amidst  a  varied 
population,  it  harboured,  we  found,  a  monster  hippo 
and  numerous  crocodiles.  The  tall  acacias  outside  were 
festooned  with  pendent  nests  of  weaver-finches,  scores  on 
a  branch — like  a  heav}"  crop  of  jargonelle  pears ;  inside, 
also,  the  bush  and  palmites  overhanging  the  stagnant 
water  were  laden  with  nests,  some  almost  dipping  the 
surface.  These  belonged  to  another  species.  The 
pennant- winged  nightjar  already  named  above,  abounded 
on  the  riverside,  flicking  ujd  at  one's  feet,  sometimes 
three  or  four  too-ether,  and  all  settlino-  ao-ain,  often  on 
bare  sand,  within  a  dozen  yards. 

We  sj^ent  many  evenings  by  that  pool  in  an  attempt 
to  secure  the  hippo — none  the  less  enjoyable  in  that  the 
main  object  failed.  The  bird-life  atoned  for  that. 
Besides  the  weavers  and  an  infinity  of  doves,  of  king- 
fishers, azure  and  j^ied,  there  also  abode  here  the 
singular  hammer-head  [Scopus  umhretta),  whose  huge 
nest — an  accumulation  of  sticks  that  would  fill  a 
cottage — burdened  a  waterside  fork.  Small  cormorants 
(some  dark,  others  buff-breasted),  and  those  extraordinary 
birds,  the  darters,  with  exaggerated  snake-like  necks,  sat 
perched  on  protruding  snags  or  dived  in  opaque  green 
depths.  The  darters  also  displayed  various  hues  :  yet 
all  belong  to  but  one  species,  Plotus  rufus.  These  birds 
possessed  a  joint  breeding-colony  a  mile  or  two  further 
u]D  the  river,  their  nests  being  massed  on  low  willows 
and  overhanoiuof  bush  ;  while  the  tall  overarchino-  trees 
above  were  occupied  by  a  heronry.  The  latter  com- 
munity included  both  purple,  black-headed  and  night- 
herons  ;  while  a  big  separate  single  nest  belonged,  I 
fancy,  to  a  pair  of  wood-ibis  that  were  always  seen  hard 
by.  The  buff'-backed  herons  maintained  a  separate 
establishment    of  their   own — among  thorn-trees,   in  a 


220 


ON   SAFARI 


rocky  ravine  near  "  Lone-Tree."     At  tliis  date,  of  course, 
none  of  these  birds  were  actually  nesting. 

Our  pachydermatous  friend  beat  us  (though  his 
stronghold  was  but  250  yards  long)  by  never  showing 
above  water  save  beneath  the  dense  fringe  of  over- 
hanging jungle  that  projected  far  beyond  either  bank. 
Nor  are  crocodiles  easy  to  detect,  so  little  do  they 
expose  above  water,  and  so  absolutely  does  their 
slimy  armour  assimilate   in  hue  with  the  slimy  rocks 


HAMMER-HEAD  [Sro/iKS  umhrcttd). 
A  monotone  in  browns,  without  a  touch  of  contrast  or  relief. 


on  which  they  lie.  One  that  we  surprised  asleep, 
though  fully  12  ft.  long,  disappeared  without  leaving 
a  ripple  behind,  so  gently  did  he  slide  off  his  ledge. 
Another  croc,  on  receiving  a  bullet,  disgorged  dozens 
of  small  silvery  fish. 

Watching  silently  by  these  eerie  ^^ools,  we  noticed 
huge  water-turtles  emerge  from  sullen  depths  and  with 
ungainl}?-  wriggle  seek  to  gain  the  bank.  There  were 
also  great  land-tortoises  ;  two  that  we  brought  home 
measure  24  ins.  over  the  carapace,  by  IQh  ins.  along  the 
fiat  belly-plate. 


THE   ATHI   RIVER  221 

In  another  forest-girt  pool,  overarclied  with  broad- 
topped  "fever-trees,"  Mabruki's  wondrous  instinct  de- 
tected a  hippo  where  none  save  savage  eye  coukl  surely 
have  espied  it.  A  big  leafy  tree  had  fallen  half  across 
the  river,  and  it  w-as  beneath  the  sunken  boughs  of  this, 
all  laden  with  drift  grass  and  WTack,  that  the  hippo 
at  intervals  show^ed  i\^  to  breathe.  Nothing  even  then 
was  visible  save  only  the  snout  and  elevated  cranium, 
and  these  concealed  amidst  leafage  and  drift.  By 
creeping  forward  while  the  hippo  was  under,  I  reached 
a  fallen  tree  within  fifteen  yards.  Presently  that  weird 
apparition  emerged,  silent  and  ghost-like  amid  the 
shadows.  I  placed  a  •450-solid  fair  on  the  cranium — 
somewhere  :  for  a  resounding  crash  ensued,  yet  no  water 
flew  up  nor  w^as  there  a  ripple  to  be  seen. 

Note  that  the  impact  of  a  ball  from  these  powerful 
rifles  on  luater  will  throw  up  a  solid  column  twenty  feet 
in  height  and  stun  all  the  fish  for  yards  around.  There 
is  therefore  no  mistaking  a  miss. 

Yet  we  never  saw  that  hippo  again.  So  absolutely 
certain  did  I  feel  that  he  must  be  dead,  that  when  we 
did  not  find  him  floating  next  morning,  thinking  he 
must  be  held  down  by  the  fallen  tree,  we  returned  a 
third  time  in  the  afternoon  with  axes,  ropes,  etc.,  and 
cut  the  trunk  loose.  But  nothing  appeared.  The  luck 
of  Elmenteita  was  repeated.  I  was  fated  not  to  get  a 
hippo  :  yet  the  undertaking  presents  not  a  tithe  the 
difficulty  of  others  in  which  we  succeeded. 

The  presence  of  so  many  ichthyophagous  birds  and 
reptiles  clearly  bespoke  fish,  and  our  men  caught 
numbers  of  a  small  dace-like  species,  pale  green  above, 
silvery  below,  which  took  a  bait  greedily,  and  were 
jerked  ashore.  Though  almost  tasteless,  fish  were 
welcome  enouoh  as  a  cliang;e  in  our  veld  fare.  We  also 
saw  other  fish,  much  larger — apparently  several  pounds 
in  weight — in  the  deep  pools  of  the  Athi. 

The  early  mornings  at  this  season  (January)  were  cold, 
still  and  foggy,  with  heavy  dew.  At  nine  o'clock  a 
breeze  set  in  from  the  north,  increasing  during  the  day 


222 


ON   SAFAEI 


(sometimes  half  a  gale  by  afternoon),  but  always 
following  the  sun  towards  west  at  dusk. 

Temperature  at  dawn,  56  degrees — one  day  as  low  as 
50  degrees  ;  temperature  at  noon,  80  to  90  degrees 
— once  or  twice  as  high  as  98  degrees  in  our  tents. 

On  many  evenings  were  magnificent  displays  of 
electric  flash-lights  in  the  heavens,  alwaj^s,  however,  at 
one  particular  spot  on  any  one  evening. 

One  night  shortly  after  "  lights-out,"  my  tent  caught 
fire  through  my  having  carelessly  knocked  out  some 
live  tobacco  ash.  Half-an-hour  later,  an  as^Dhyxiating 
"  stythe "  awoke  me,  and  having  relit  the  lamp,  I  was 


THE   DACE    {Leucisciis)    OF    ATHI. 


seeking  the 

cartridge 

smouldering. 


cause  thereof,  when  bang  went  a  cordite 
at  my  feet ;  my  khaki  cartridge-bag  was 
and  next  moment  flames  leaped  up  the 
canvas  wall.  I  sang  out  for  help,  and  meanwhile  got 
to  work  w^ith  boots,  sun-helmet,  w^hatever  came  handy, 
to  stamp  out  the  fire.  The  night-watch  was  smart 
enough  on  the  spot,  bringing  buckets  of  water,  and 
though  amid  repeated  explosions  of  cartridges  I  had 
already  extinguished  the  flames,  the  men  promptly 
deluged  my  bed  and  belongings  !  Considerable  force  is 
developed  by  the  explosion  of  a  cordite  cartridge,  even 
when  unconfined  in  a  barrel,  for  several  of  the  remain- 
ing cartridges  were  bulged  and  twisted.  The  bullets, 
however,  of  those  that  had  gone  off",  lay  about  harm- 
lessly. Note,  that  there  were  no  ticks  or  other  vermin 
in  my  tent  after  that  accident ! 


THE   ATHI   RIVER 


223 


We  caught,  during  January,  the  young  of  both 
species  of  gazelle,  about  half-grown.  All  efforts  to  rear 
them,  however,  failed — ^just  as  happened  with  our  young 
oryx  at  Baringo.  Fresh  cows'  milk  is  the  first  essential, 
and  we  had  none — only  tinned  stuff.  The  young  of 
G.  thomsoni  are  striped  vertically,  zebra-fashion,  in  a 
darker  shade. 

February    5. — Rode    out  this   evening   to    Khoma 


^■/,/^''/' 


hAu^^^^'  ' 


GIRAFFES. 

Note  that  at  the  distant  view  (700  yards)  markings  are  indistinguishable. 

old  bull  aj^peared  nearly  black. 


The 


Koppies,  to  examine  once  more  all  the  lion-holts  and 
caves ;  but  again  without  success,  though  the  spectacle 
of  wild-life  enjoyed  to-night  ranks  among  the  many 
wondrous  scenes  I  have  gazed  on  in  Africa.  On  open 
veld  below  the  koppie,  half-a-mile  from  the  nearest 
trees,  grazed  seven  giraffe — one  a  huge  black  bull.  I 
watched  them  put  their  heads  right  down,  feeding — not 
actually  on  grass,  but,  as  1  presently  ascertained,  on 
the  low  mimosa-growth  among  the  grass.  When  stand- 
ing at  ease,  the  neck  is  held  forward  in  same  plane  with 


224 


ON   SAFARI 


the  back,  say  at  an  angle  of  45  degrees  to  the  ground. 
Four  ostriches  fed  with  the  giraffe,  and  below,  nearer 
the  wooded  donga,  seven  waterbuck.  Close  by  stood  a 
hyena. 

Besides  the  above,  there  were  also  in  sight  of  where 
I  sat  on  the  high  koppie,  three  great  crowds  of  kongoni 
— hundreds  in  all — and  several  troops  of  zebra,  mixed 
with  which  were  six  wildebeest,  while  gazelles  of  both 
sorts  dotted  the  veld.  Overhead  soared  a  pair  of  the 
great  white-breasted  harpy  eagles,  using  their  extended 
feet  as  equipoises  to  balance  in  the  breeze.  On  the 
koppie  hard  by,  hyrax  ran  about  the  rocks,  and  the 
evening  sky  was  filled  with  hovering  kestrels.  A 
Bateleur  eagle,  disturbed  from  the  crags,  vainly  tried  to 
poise  on  a  thorn-tree  below,  and  skeins  of  crowned 
cranes  startled  the  stillness,  passing  up  the  valley  with 
resonant  cries. 


EAGLES  STOOPING. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

ON  THE  STONY  ATHI 
JANUARY — FEBRUAEY    1906 

Not  having  heard  a  single  Hon  by  night  since  the 
18th,  on  January  23  we  shifted  camp  to  the  Stony 
Athi.     While    the   safari   held  the   line  of  the   rivers, 

W and   I  crossed   over  by  the  Lukenia  Heights, 

where  in  a  steep  rocky  glen  we  observed  a  hyena 
slinking  away.  Having  by  a  flank  stalk  reached  the 
exact  spot,  and  seeing  nothing  of  the  beast,  I  feared  he 
had  slipped  away  (though  how  I  could  not  see),  and  was 
searching  the  ground  minutely,  when  he  jumped  from  a 
wet  drain  in  the  hollow  below  and  galloped  up  the 
opposite  slope,  distended  with  meat  to  double  his  proper 
breadth.  After  over-shooting;  with  the  rio;ht,  I  g-ot  him 
stone-dead  with  the  left,  going  for  all  he  was  worth,  at 
100  yards.  This  was  a  male  in  his  prime,  and  the  best 
I  have  seen,  being  perfect  in  both  teeth  and  fur,  the 
latter  heavily  spotted,  clean  and  without  the  least  touch 
of-  mange.  Length,  taped  along  back,  57^  ins.; 
weight,  full  as  he  was  (we  coald  barely  lift  him  to  pose 
for  his  photo,  see  p.  232),  reckoned  at  nearly  200  lbs.  ; 
irides  dark ;  inside  of  mouth,  lips  and  tongue,  livid  blue 
or  lavender  colour. 

Stony  Athi,  January  24. — Lions  roaring  splendidly 
near  camp  at  4  a.m.,  so  we  set  out  at  dawn,  with  two 
Wakamba  savages  as  guides,  and  tried  a  great  extent  of 
likely  cover — wood,  scrub  and  reed-beds  along  the  river 
— but  without  seeing  anything  bigger  than  a  bushbuck. 

I  shot  a  zebra  for  meat,  a  photo  of  which  (showing 

225  Q 


226  ON   SAFARI 

Said  Hassan,  and  Mabriiki  on  tlie  right)  is  given  at  p. 

236,  and  W ,  not  fancying  this,  added  a  "  Tommy  " 

for  our  own  mess.  Though  terribly  wounded,  this  little 
antelope  was  getting  away  when  two  jackals  took  up 
the  chase,  running  him  one  on  either  flank,  and  eventu- 
ally turning  the  poor  wounded  beastie  and  driving  him 

back   into  W 's  face.     They  got   the   gralloch   for 

their  share.  The  zebras  of  the  Athi  are  striped  around 
the  legs  nearly  down  to  the  hoof,  the  last  inch  being- 
black,  thus  belonging  to  the  sub-species,  or  form  Equus 
cliapmani.  Their  colour,  as  in  all  East- African  zebras, 
is  of  purest  white,  the  bands  broad  and  intensely  black. 

The  following  day  I  at  length  succeeded  in  fulfilling 
one  main  ambition — by  securing  my  first  wildebeest 
bull  of  the  East-African  species.  There  were  four  of 
them  in  a  wide-sweeping  basin — impossible  of  access. 
Having  a  good  "  rest "  on  an  ant-hill,  I  was  constrained 
to  try  a  shot  at  some  400  yards.  No  sound  of  a  hit 
reached  my  ears,  but  within  a  minute  one  of  the  four 
stopped  and  lay  down,  the  others  halting  beyond. 
There  was  no  mistaking  the  import  of  this  ;  yet  that 
stern-chase  led  us  many  a  weary  mile  over  shadeless 
plain,  ere  that  great  shaggy  beast  finally  succumbed  to 
a  fifth  bullet  just  before  the  sun  went  under.  A  wilde- 
beest bull  is  a  noble  prize  ;  this  one  was  a  fair  average 
specimen,  his  horns  measuring  22j  ins.  between  the 
inside  bends.  Dead-weight  as  he  fell  estimated  at  near 
500  lbs.  For  days  and  weeks  after  this,  the  wildebeests 
utterly  defied  our  utmost  efforts. 

We  saw  four  eland  to-day,  as  well  as  waterbuck, 
impala  and  wart-hog — the  latter  followed  by  small 
young. 

The  lion  still  filled  our  minds.  Rock-koppies  and 
ravines  alike  had  failed ;  but  there  remained  another 
resource — namely,  the  beds  of  heavy  green  flags  that 
fringe  the  river  (called  "  tinga-tinga "  by  the  natives), 
and  which  the  Wakamba  assured  us  held  lions.  One  of 
the  largest  of  these  lies  in  full  view  of  passengers  on 
the  Uganda  railway — near  mile-peg  300 — and  hard  by 


ON   THE   STONY  ATHI  227 

this,  on  Stony  Atlii,  we  pitched  camp.  Here  before 
each  dawn  we  occupied  posts  commanding  views  far  and 
wide  over  the  veld,  and  eagerly  "glassed"  every  beast 
that  moved  in  hopes  of  recognising  an  approaching  lion  ; 
but  none  appeared.  Later  we  tried  "  driving "  the 
tinga-tinga — a  job  our  men  shied  at  till  promised  back- 
sheesh in  event  of  success.  We  also  pushed  through 
the  heavy  flags  ourselves  ;  but  that  was  blind  work,  and 
in  the  result  never  so  much  as  saw  a  lion.  They  might 
still  be  there,  nevertheless,  so  dense  and  extensive  was 
the  covert. 

It  was  at  this  point  that,  a  year  or  two  earlier,  our 
friend  Mr.  Chalmers  Bontein  was  rather  badly  mauled 
by  a  lion  he  had  wounded  and  followed  into  cover. 

One  evenino;  our  men  collectino;  fire-wood  rushed  in 
to  report  a  lion  close  by.  It  proved  to  be  a  hyena, 
which  animals  wailed  around  the  camp  every  night. 

Meanwhile  a  double  misfortune  had  overtaken  me. 
From  the  start  it  had  been  clear  that  my  Somali  hunter, 
Said  Hassan  (whom  I  had  brought  from  Aden),  was  a 
fraud.  He  was,  moreover,  an  arrogant  self-opinionated 
ass,  who  created  trouble  in  the  safari.  A  really  good 
Somali  is  an  invaluable  assistant  in  stalking,  their 
trained  eyesight  holding  in  view  every  movement  of 
the  game  even  when  in  forest  or  bush.  Such  was  my 
Elmi  Hassan  in  1904,  and  such  my  brother's  present 
hunter,  Ali  Yama.  On  the  other  hand,  Said's  sum  total 
of  fieldcraft  consisted  in  half-a-dozen  monkey  tricks.  I 
therefore  packed  him  back  to  Aden,  having  had  to  pay 
his  passage  over  4,000  miles  on  the  faith  of  "chits" 
(references)  that  he  had  never  earned.  During  the  rest 
of  this  trip  I  did  my  hunting  alone,  employing  the 
Swahili,  Mabruki,  as  gunbearer. 

My  experience  of  Somali  hunters  is  that  three  out  of 
every  four  who  profess  to  be  shikaris  are  not  worth  their 
"  ghee." 

The  second  trouble  was  worse — a  sheer  catastrophe. 
A  brand-new,  costly,  telescope-sighted  rifle,  the  weapon 
upon  which  all  my  reliance  was  centred,  went  to  bits 


228  ON   SAFARI 

within  the  first  week.  After  half-a-dozen  shots,  I 
noticed  that  the  attachment  of  the  telescope  to  the  rib 
was  no  longer  rigid  ;  there  was  a  distinct  lateral  move- 
ment— in  itself  a  fatal  flaw.  A  few  days  later,  on  firing, 
the  whole  telescope  flew  bodily  back  in  my  face,  laying 
open  my  cheek  and  cutting  eyebrow  and  the  bridge  of 
the  nose,  which  still  bears  the  mark.  The  fault  was  due 
to  defective  mechanism ;  for  the  wdiole  jar  of  recoil,  as 
communicated  to  the  telescope,  was  received  by  a  tiny 
screw  that  held  barely  an  eighth  of  an  inch  into  the 
rib. 

Being  thus  crippled,  I  rode  into  Athi  River  station 
and  took  train  to  Nairobi,  on  the  ofl'-chance  that  such 
complex  repairs  could  be  eff"ected  in  Central  Africa.  By 
the  kindness  of  Mr.  Gallagher,  the  Chief  Mechanical 
Engineer  of  the  U.R.,  the  attachment  w^as  made  secure  ; 
but  alas,  the  precise  adjustment  of  alignment  between 
barrel  and  telescope  was  too  much  to  expect  in  the  very 
best  "  railway  shops,"  and  for  the  rest  of  the  trip  this 
most  important  rifle  was  no  more  use  than  so  much  old 
metal. 

Fortunate^,  I  found  a  friend  in  need  in  Mr.  F.  J. 
Jackson,  C.B.,  H.M.'s  Deputy-Commissioner  (now 
Lieut. -Governor  of  British  East  Africa),  who  most 
kindly  lent  me  a  '303  telescope-sighted  rifle,  w^ith  which 
I  was  enabled  to  do  excellent  work. 

Returning  to  the  Athi  River  two  days  later,  I 
received  at  the  station  the  following  note  from  my 
brother  : — "  You  needn't  worry  about  those  Avildebeest. 
I've  found  out  how  to  get  them — on  their  way  to  water, 
night  and  morning.  I  shot  four  yesterday  in  two  right- 
and-lefts,  and  one  '  lone  bull '  this  morning.  A  snake 
of  sorts  jabbed  at  me  among  the  grass  coming  back  to 
camp.  I  let  drive  and  luckily  blew  his  neck  oflT.  He 
was  5  ft.  4  ins.,  with  a  sort  of  hood  on  his  head." 
[This  was  a  hooded  cobra.]  "  Indians  from  the  Landi 
assert  there  are  two  lions  in  the  tinga-tinga — w^e  must 
try  them  on  Tuesday,  with  all  hands  and  backsheesh. 
Am  sending  a  dozen  porters  and  '  Goldfinch '  to  meet 


32 


J 


;5 


-3 


:a 
SI 


1      >,      J      1      5 
'      ?    ,    '      '        J 


ON   THE   STONY   ATHI, 


,^.^9 


you— I  start  early  myself  in  morning  to  watch  the 
nyuml)o  (wildebeest)." 

Following  is  my  brother's  description  of  his  almost 
unlooked-for  success  with  the  wildebeests — 

"  The  white-bearded  gnu,  or  blue  wildebeest,  so 
familiar  to  travellers  on  the  Uganda  railway,  is  an 
excessively  wild  animal,  yet  not  difficult  to  circumvent, 
provided  a  few  easily-aj)plied  rules  are  observed. 

"  Scattered  on  open  plains  in  herds,  or  often  singly, 


HOODED  COBKA  (Xaja  luije) — Both  strikes  dh-ect  and  also  ejects  poison. 

it  is  out  of  the  question  to  approach  them  by  any 
ordinary  stalking,  as  a  very  few  days'  trial  will  convince. 
Besides,  it's  worse  than  unsportsmanlike,  it's  criminal  to 
fire  at  animals  at  500  yards.  If  you  kill,  it's  a  fluke, 
for  which  you  deserve  to  be  kicked  rather  than  com- 
plimented. 

"  I  spent  three  weeks  among  the  wildebeests  last  year 
— a  fortnight  in  utterly  futile  efl'orts  to  secure  a  single 
specimen. '  The  first  really  useful  observation  came  to 
us  early  one  morning.  We  were  seated  on  a  perfectly 
open  plain  without  attempt  at  concealment,  when  day- 
light filled  the  scene,  and  showed  us  four  or  five  troops 
of  wildebeest  standing  within  view.  Knowing  so  well 
that  they  were    inaccessible,   we   remained  motionless, 


,'.'.^Q\\i'':V',\    :/;/,,/    ON   SAFAKI 


watching,  till  presently  we  began  to  be  touched  with 
a  gradual  sense  of  wonder  at  their  curious  inaction — 
why  should  five  herds  all  be  standing  so  precisely  alike, 
neither  feeding  nor  moving  ?  What  small  desultory 
movements  occurred  appeared  to  be  limited  to  the 
hartebeests  which  accompanied  each  troop.  There 
seemed  to  be  a  kind  of  sorting  movement  afoot.  This 
alone  does  not  seem  to  be  a  very  important  observation  ; 
yet  it  proved,  none  the  less,  to  be  the  key  to  the  whole 
secret  of  securing  them. 

"  The  wildebeest  drink  twice  daily — at  sunrise  and 
sunset ;  but  the  hartebeest  being  the  keener-sighted  of 
the  two,  the  wildebeests  emj^loy  these  to  pilot  them- 
selves past  any  hidden  dangers  that  may  lurk  between 
the  ujDlands  and  the  water  below.  This  acknowledged 
superiority — the  testimony  of  the  greater  ajjimal  to- 
wards the  less — leads  in  a  way  to  the  general  undoing 
of  the  whole  scheme. 

"  The  process  of  making-up  the  watering-parties  is 
tedious,  but  at  length  gradually  completed.  Then  the 
kongoni  steps  out  ahead,  examining  the  lay  of  the  land 
and  scrutinising  every  visible  feature.  As  he  advances, 
his  confidence  increases,  and  with  it  a  fatal  pride  of 
place.  He  has  made  himself  confident — unduly  con- 
fident— of  the  safety  of  his  immediate  vicinity,  as  with 
head  erect  and  muzzle  extended  he  moves  proudly 
forward,  the  thirsty  wildebeests  pressing  nearer  and 
nearer  on  his  flank  as  the  water  is  approached.  No 
'  monarch  of  the  glen '  exceeds  him  then  in  his  lordly 
bearing,  and  the  astonished  hunter  lies  spellbound  at 
the  spectacle.  The  shepherded  wildebeests  lumber  along 
behind,  all  muzzles  down — what  a  study  in  contrasts  ! 

"  Under  no  other  circumstances  would  a  hunter 
now  remain  unobserved — indeed,  it  mav  be  added  that 
under  no  other  could  he  have  attained  a  dominatmg 
position. 

"  Once  having  observed  the  line  a  pilot-kongoni  is 
about  to  take,  that  position  must  be  reached  ;  and  the 
long  delay  of  the  game   in  '  sorting-out '    allows  time 


ON   THE   STONY  ATHI  231 

sufficient  for  this.  The  position,  it  must  be  remembered, 
is  one  that  will  cut  off  the  animals  as  they  approach  the 
water ;  yet  it  must  not  be  so  near  as  to  disturb  other 
animals  that  may  already  be  drinking  there — say  from 
400  to  800  yards.  The  configuration  of  the  land — 
drooping  in  successive  steps  towards  the  lower  levels — • 
may  assist  in  acquiring  the  desired  position  ;  otherwise 
much  crawling  may  be  necessary. 

"  Once  having  attained  this  position,  no  cover  is 
needed,  though  should  there  be  any,  so  much  the  better. 
The  essential  now  is  to  remain  rigidly  motionless.  The 
least  movement,  especially  when  the  game  is  yet  distant, 
is  instantly  fatal — the  kongoni  spots  it.  The  nearer  he 
comes  the  safer  you  are,  since  he  is  then  looking  over 
you.  Once  when  the  pilot  approached  so  directly  that 
he  almost  looked  like  treading  on  us,  my  hunter  in  his 
excitement  pinched  me  so  severely  that  I  was  obliged 
to  kick  him.  In  doing  so,  I  not  only  moved,  but  made 
a  slight  noise ;  yet  the  kongoni  noticed  nothing,  and  a 
moment  later  I  killed  the  wildebeest  at  the  muzzle  of 
the  rifle. 

"  Another  incident  illustrates  the  comparative 
blindness  of  the  hartebeests  in  the  pride  of  piloting  their 
shaggy  friends.  This  time  we  had  reached  a  position 
beyond  which  we  dare  not  advance,  the  ground  in  front 
being  burnt  and  absolutely  bare.  But  we  were  near 
enough — too  near,  as  the  sequel  showed — to  their  final 
line  of  approach.  As  the  game  comes  in,  the  hunter 
must  of  course  concentrate  all  his  attention  on  the  rifle 
and  its  aim,  since  no  subsequent  movement  is  possible. 
At  that  precise  period,  say  200  yards  away,  the  pilot 
was  at  least  fifty  yards  ahead  of  his  charge.  With  eyes 
glued  to  the  telescope-sight,  I  was  of  course  unable  any 
longer  to  follow  their  relative  movements.  Presently  the 
hartebeest  appeared  on  the  object-glass  ;  but  scarce  had 
he  passed  by  than  the  black  muzzle  of  the  wildebeest 
came  into  the  picture,  not  one  yard  behind  !  This  so 
disconcerted  me  that  already  the  psychological  moment 
for  pulling  trigger  had  gone,  the  bullet  struck  too  far 


232  ON   SAFARI 

back,  and  had  it  not  been  for  a  second  barrel  a  grand 
bull  gnu  might  perhaps  have  escaped." 

It  was  4  p.m.  when,  on  returning  from  Nairobi,  I 
rode  into  camp  on  the  Stony  Athi.  Ali  Yam  a  was  then 
already  watching  a  herd  of  200  wildebeest  assembling 
some  three  miles  away,  preparatory  to  coming  to  water. 
After  a  cup  of  coffee,  we  set  out  at  once.  The  gnu 
in  long  procession,  all  heads  held  low,  slowly  directed 
their  course  riverwards.  The  ground  was  open  and 
unfavourable  ;  hence  we  were  still  250  yards  away  when 
the  head  of  the  column  (unaccompanied,  this  time,  by 
hartebeest)  reached  the  river  and  descended  the  steep 
bank.  Truly  it  seemed  a  "  soft  job  "  !  I  had  only  to 
await  the  disappearance  of  the  last  beast,  and  the  whole 
herd  were  at  my  disposal.  But  animal-instinct  is  not 
so  simple.  The  astute  gnus  this  evening  left  a  single 
sentry  on  guard  above,  and  this  of  course  forbade  my 
going  in.  Jn  the  result  I  was  obliged  to  accept  the  long- 
range  shot — declined  before — as  they  left  the  water,  and 
secured  a  fair  bull  with  2 2 -in.  head. 

The  following  day,  further  up  the  river,  another 
chance  was  presented — the  gnu  being  this  time  piloted 
by  a  single  hartebeest  as  described ;  but  it  clearly 
evidences  the  tense  keenness  of  their  instincts  that,  on 
the  third  day,  not  a  single  wildebeest  came  to  water, 
whether  up  or  down  river  !  The  chance  was  over,  but 
with  eight  splendid  specimens  we  were  content. 

January  31. — Returning  to  the  standing-camp  this 
morning,  I  got  another  grand  wildebeest  bull  (the  ninth) 
in  this  way.    We  were  moving  forward  in  parallel  valleys 

about   two   miles  apart,  W ,   I    observed,  pushing 

before  him  a  crowd  of  kongoni,  with  this  single  big  gnu 
in  company.  Presently  the  kongoni,  hundreds  strong, 
wheeled  towards  me,  and  began  streaming  across  the 
ridge  on  my  front ;  when,  aided  by  slightly  favouring 
ground,  I  got  well  forward  and  awaited  the  gnu ;  along 
he  came  with  his  prancing  gallop,  but  on  seeing  many 
kongoni  (which  had  already  passed  me,   and  were  in 


3  3 

J  >      3^       J       3      3  ) 

5  i3\3333 

3  3      3    \'       >  3  3 

»  *         »  3       3  3  3 


5.3     1 


"^'-r'?  = 


^>^  ^'»s» 


.Sl'OTTEIi    JIYEXA. 

(Ali  Yania  on  right.] 


^^gg 


BRINDLED   GXU,    lU'LL — STUXY   ATHI. 

(Mabruki  on  left.) 


ON   THE   STONY   ATHI  233 

safety,  500  yards  off)  standing  "on  gaze"  lie  must 
needs  gaze  too.  But  be,  being  exactly  245  yards  away, 
thus  received  a  "450  ball  in  the  forehead  !  The  photo 
on  previous  page  shows  him  as  he  fell. 

This,  and  my  brother's  best  bull,  each  measured  over 
25  ins.  between  the  inside  bends  of  their  horns. 

When  w^ounded  and  at  close  quarters,  the  weird  and 
shaggy  wildebeest,  with  his  broad  horns  and  fierce  eye, 
can  present  a  sufficiently  alarming  appearance.  The 
fact  was  driven  home  by  an  incident  that  occurred  in 
the  Transvaal  in  August  1899.  I  had  succeeded  in 
cutting  out  a  herd  of  some  forty  brindled  gnus  coming 
to  water  on  the  N'guanetsi  River,  and  the  second  barrel 
had  knocked  over  a  big  bull  which,  however,  speedily 
regained  his  legs,  when  the  whole  herd  bunched  together 
and  disappeared  from  view,  amidst  the  fringing  bush 
and  forest.  The  trail  they  left — like  that  of  a  runaway 
wagon — obliterated  all  individual  spoor ;  but  after  follow- 
ing it  with  my  gunbearer,  Klaas,  a  mile  or  so  on  to  the 
open  grass-veld  beyond,  a  single  beast  had  turned  out 
to  the  right,  and  on  this  trail  we  instantly  detected 
blood.  Five  hundred  yards  beyond,  while  crossing  a 
stony  patch,  bare  of  grass,  we  were  arrested  by  a  roar 
and  a  rush  in  our  rear.  Not  twenty  yards  behind  came 
the  wounded  bull,  dashing  towards  us — a  perfect  picture 
of  fury.  We  had  walked  past  him ;  for  (as  wounded 
beasts  often  do)  he  had  turned  back  on  his  heel  before 
lying  down,  but  on  getting  our  wind  beyond,  made  this 
grand  effort.  Luckily  (as  I  only  carried  a  stick)  the 
bull's  strength  betrayed  his  courage.  Klaas  handed 
the  rifle  smartly,  skipping  behind  me  in  the  same 
movement.  But  already  the  acute  stage  had  passed. 
Within  twice  his  own  length,  the  plucky  beast  pulled 
up  exhausted,  his  eyes  still  flashing  and  broad 
muzzle  stretched  out  horizontally  towards  us,  blow- 
ing and  bellowing.  But  crimson  foam  flew  from 
those  nostrils,  and  by  stepping  two  yards  to  right,  I 
got  the  shoulder  exposed  and  terminated  a  memorable 
scene. 


234 


ON    SAFAEI 


Although  when  seen  cantering  at  ease  the  harte- 
beest  gives  an  impression  of  being  stiff  and  ungainly, 
yet  when  they  really  stretch  themselves  out,  no  animal 
possesses  freer  or  more  magnificent  action,  very  high 
forward.  To-day  while  this  troop  were  crossing  my 
front  at  full  speed,  one  beast  saw  me,  stopped  dead  and 


SECEETAEY  {Secretarius  serpeiniarius). 


turned  broadside  to  the  rest — those  following,  each  at 
one  impulse,  leaped  clean  over  his  back  ! 

Another  day  we  watched  two  bulls  chasing — their 
speed  being  terrific  and  long-maintained.  The  pursued, 
in  a  quick  double,  fell,  the  pursuer  at  once  leaping  clear ; 
but  in  the  same  instant  the  fallen  beast  was  up  and 
away  back  with  a  clear  gain  of  ten  yards  ! 

While  lying  watching  an  assemblage  of  wildebeests,  I 
was  much  interested  to  see  a  secretary-bird  catch  a  small 
snake  while  in  full  view.     The  bird,  while  among  short 


ON   THE   STONY  ATHI  235 

grass  on  an  opposite  bluff,  made  a  sudden  spring  forward. 
There  ensued  much  fuss  and  action,  the  great  wings 
being  spread  out  downwards  (as  a  sparrow-hawk  covers 
over  its  prey),  while  some  furious  stamps  of  its  foot 
were  administered  ere  the  reptile  was  finally  pouched. 
Also,  on  the  day  when  I  finally  secured  my  first  wilde- 
beest bull,  after  following  the  blood- spoor  for  hours — 
almost  to  the  Kikuyu  forest — I  chanced,  in  a  lonely 
group  of  thorn-trees,  on  a  huge  flat  stick-built  nest.  It 
contained  small  bones,  skulls,  and  the  vertebrae  of 
serpents,  others  lying  strewn  beneath.  This  I  thought 
would  belong  to  some  eagle  or  vulture ;  but  Ali  asserted 
it  was  a  secretary's  nest,  and  was  probably  correct,  as  I 
now  read  that  these  singular  birds  do  breed  so,  in  trees. 

One  must  not  leave  the  Athi  w^ithout  mentioning 
the  ticks.  They  were  not  so  bad  in  September,  but  in 
January  they  are  a  terror,  attacking  all  the  softest  parts 
of  one's  body,  and  burrowing  into  the  flesh,  till  one 
resembles  a  "target."  Every  day  one's  tent-boy  must 
remove  them.  A  much  larger  variety  attacks  animals, 
and  my  poor  pony  "Goldfinch"  suff"ered  severely. 
These  blood-suckers  when  removed  in  the  morning  were 
of  the  size  of  hazel-nuts.  They,  in  manifold  varieties, 
also  infest  the  game,  and  it  has  been  loosely  stated  that 
until  the  ticks  (and  the  game)  are  utterly  cleared  out, 
no  cattle  can  thrive  here.  That,  how^ever,  needs  proof. 
Nature  has  arrayed  more  formidable  opponents  than  the 
tick  to  man's  conquest  of  the  wilds.  A  first  difliculty 
will  be  the  w^aut  of  water.  Throughout  the  150  miles 
of  the  Athi  Plains,  there  run  but  these  two  rivers — and 
they  largely  dry  at  certain  seasons.  But  the  wrack  and 
drifted  rubbish  lodged  high  up  in  the  branches  of  river- 
side trees,  evidence  heavy  floods  at  times.  It  remains  to 
be  seen  if  that  flood-water  can  be  conserved  and  utilised. 

A  minor  nuisance  to  the  hunter  is  the  wait-a-bit 
thorn.  At  this  season  (January)  it  assumes  a  soft 
velvety-green  foliage  almost  inviting  to  the  touch ;  but 
woe  to  the  hand  that  grasps  it.  An  even  worse  man- 
trap are  its   dead   thin  shoots,  hardly  distinguishable 


236  ON   SAFAEI 

among  the  wiry  grass;  yet  unless  distinguislied  and 
avoided  a  great  tearing  laceration  of  hand  or  fore-arm 
results ;  and  wounds  in  this  climate  are  slow  in  healing. 

Without  insisting  too  much  on  the  heat — wdiich  on 
the  equator  goes  without  saying — one  short  conversa- 
tion may  be  recorded.  It  was  just  before  "lights-out," 
and  the  morrow's  plans  had  been  arranged. — No.  1. 
"Let's  make  a  special  effort  to-morrow."  No.  2.  "All 
right ;  but  .  .  .  isn't  it  rather  hot  for  special  efforts  ?  " 
It  was. 

One  evening  on  Stony  Athi,  a  Wakamba  porter 
was  seized  with  a  severe  illness  beyond  our  power  to 
diagnose,  though  we  tried  to  treat  it  to  the  best  of  our 
judgment.  The  poor  man  was  evidently  in  terrible 
pain,  rolling  on  the  ground.  Next  day  we  had  arranged 
to  send  him  to  the  railway  under  escort ;  but,  apparently 
in  delirium,  he  bolted,  taking  the  open  veld.  We  sent 
out  search-parties,  but  failed  to  find  a  trace  of  him ; 
probably  he  had  found  a  grave  in  the  hyena's  maw. 

During  January  there  occurred  an  outbreak  of 
"  plague  "  in  Nairobi,  and  a  cj[uarantine  cordon  (against 
natives  only)  was  drawn  around  the  capital.  Con- 
sequently, when,  on  February  6,  we  finally  left  the 
fiery  veld  of  Athi,  we  had  to  leave  the  safari  encamped 

three  miles  out,  AV and  I  going  on  into  the  town. 

Next  morning  word  reached  us  that  a  mutiny  had 
broken  out  in  our  camp.  On  riding  out  we  found  that 
these  simple  savages  had  broken  into  our  stores — 
particularly  into  a  case  that  contained  our  few  bottles 
of  whisky — with  obvious  results.  Amidst  much  heavy 
lying,  we  ascertained  the  main  facts,  and  the  retribution 
that  followed  was  summary  and  effectual 


'  'J   '   i '  '   ■>  i' 


HOODED    COBIIA. 


zEi'.uA  UN  ,stu>;y  athi. 


CHAPTER   XX 

HUNTING  ON  THE  SIMBA  RIVER 

"  In  valleys  remote  where  the  Oribi  plays, 
And  the  Gnu,  the  Gazelle  and  the  Hartebeest  graze, 
And  the  shy  Quagga's  whistling  neigh 
Is  heard  by  the  fountain  at  break  of  day." 

Pringle. 

Amid  sultry  jungle  we  pitchecl  camp  by  tlie  banks  of 
the  Simba  River.  This  spot  lies  200  miles  eastward 
from  Nairobi,  and  being  only  3,350  ft.  above  sea-level 
(against  6,000  ft.,  the  mean  elevation  of  the  Athi 
Plains),  is  apt  to  be  terribly  warm.  We  had,  in  fact, 
descended  to  a  tropical  zone,  as  was  evidenced  in  every 
detail  of  nature — in  the  changed  trees  and  shrubs,  with 
their  far  denser  foliage,  in  the  changed  bird-  and  insect- 
life,  and  ...  in  the  heat.     This  was  mid-March. 

We  had  sought  this  inferno  specially  to  hunt  the 
fringe-eared  oryx  of  East  Africa  [Oryx  callotis),  which 
is  only  found  here  and  southwards  therefrom. 

The  other  species.  Oryx  heisa,  is  confined  to  Baringo 
and  the  Tana  River  and  the  regions  northwards  thence 
(see  Chap.  VII.).  There  thus  intervenes  between  these 
two  closely-allied  species  a  broad  belt  of  country,  say 
100  miles  in  width,  devoid  of  oryx  of  either  kind.  A 
secondary  object  (we  always  have  "  objects  ")  was  the 
lesser  koodoo. 

Simba,  at  certain  seasons,  is  a  great  game-country. 
In  the  month  of  September  we  have  seen  its  prairies 
and  forest-opens  thronged  with  troop  upon  troop  of 
zebras  and  hartebeests,  gazelles,  ostrich  and  brindled 
gnu.  But  not  a  single  gnu  remains  in  the  district  in 
March,  and  only  an  insignificant  proportion  of  the  rest. 
This   is,  moreover,  a   notable   lion-country    (the   name 

237 


238  ON   SAFARI 

Simba  means  "  Lion  "),  as  the  following  extract,  in  the 
breezy  colonial  journalism  of  the  Globe  Trotter  (Jmie  6, 
1906),  will  serve  to  show — 

"  The  lions  of  East  Africa  appear  to  be  watching 
the  progress  of  civilisation  with  deep  interest,  and 
nothing  has  done  more  to  arouse  their  curiosity  than 
the  trains  on  the  Uganda  railway.  The  railway  from 
the  Indian  Ocean  to  Victoria  Nyanza  is  584  miles  long, 
and  betw^een  the  terminal  points  are  thirty-nine  stations. 
The  line  is  managed  on  the  system  of  the  Indian 
railways,  and  most  of  the  men  in  the  track,  train  and 
station  service  are  East  Indians.  The  Indian  station- 
agent  is  known  as  a  babu,  and  he  leads  a  lonesome  life, 
Simba,  for  example,  w^here  the  lions  have  been  making  a 
special  study  of  the  railway  station,  has  only  a  station 
building,  a  water-tank  for  the  engines,  and  a  siding,  this 
being  one  of  the  places  where  trains  pass  each  other  on 
the  single-track  road. 

"  The  trouble  began  at  Simba  eleven  months  ago — 
in  July  1905 — when  the  traffic-manager  at  Nairobi  one 
morning  received  this  astonishing  telegram  from  the 
babu  at  Simba — 

"  '  A  lion  has  been  bothering  me  for  three  niohts. 
He  comes  up  on  the  station  platform  and  goes  to  sleep. 
Then  he  walks  up  and  down,  scratches  on  the  wall  and 
door,  and  tries  to  get  into  the  office.  Please  send 
cartridges  for  a  Snider  rifle  by  the  first  train  for  my 
protection.  I  have  blank  cartridges,  but  they  are  of  no 
use  against  lions.' 

"  This  profound  observation  has  the  ear-mark  of  sober 
truth.  Whether  the  lion  desired  to  buy  a  ticket  or 
whether  a  fellow-feeling  for  the  lonesome  babu  induced 
him  to  try  to  cultivate  his  acquaintance  is  not  known, 
but  it  is  quite  certain  that  blank  cartridges  were  not 
appropriate  ammunition,  and  that  bullets  were  in 
demand. 

"It  is  to  be  supposed  that  these  were  promptly  sup- 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   RIVER       239 

plied  ;  but,  if  so,  they  did  not  make  a  deep  impression 
upon  the  lions,  for  in  August  another  hair-raising 
telegram  reached  the  traffic-manao'er,  as  follows — 

"'Simba,  August  17,  1.45  a.m. 

"  '  Urgent.     To  Traffic-Manager. 

"  '  A  lion  is  on  the  platform.  Please  instruct  guard 
and  driver  to  proceed  carefully  and  to  expect  no  signals 
in  the  yard.  Tell  the  guard  to  advise  passengers  not  to 
get  out  here,  and  to  be  very  careful  himself  when  he 
comes  into  the  office.' 

"  It  is  not  quite  certain  whether  the  babu  was  chiefly 
solicitous  for  the  safety  of  the  guard  or  whether  he 
thought  that  the  lion  might  take  advantage  of  the  open 
door  to  come  into  the  office.  However  this  may  be,  the 
distress-sio-nal  from  Simba  had  the  immediate  result  of 
starting  a  British  sportsman  in  that  direction.  He  took 
the  next  train  for  Simba,  and  under  the  water-tank  he 
and  the  railway-men  erected  a  platform  about  ten  feet 
above  the  ground,  where  the  Nimrod  spent  several  days 
waiting  for  the  visitors.  His  patience  was  at  length 
rewarded. 

"  The  ffi'st  animal  he  saw  was  a  lioness,  that  came 
walking  out  of  the  scrub,  very  likely  for  the  purpose  of 
quenching  her  thirst  at  the  little  stream  that  was  leaking 
from  the  tank.  When  she  was  within  about  fifty  yards 
of  the  platform  the  hunter  put  a  cordite  bullet  into  her 
and  stretched  her  on  the  ground.  The  hunter  did  not 
leave  his  perch,  for  he  thought  something  more  would  be 
doing.  He  was  not  mistaken.  A  little  later  two  lions 
came  out  of  the  high  grass,  and  were  soon  in  great 
mental  distress  over  the  strange  attitude  of  the  dead 
female.  They  kept  circling  around  her  body,  now 
growling,  then  whining.  They  hit  the  body  with  their 
paws,  and  at  last  began  to  drag  it  away,  perhaps  with 
the  idea  of  awakening  her.  Just  then  a  bullet  ended 
the  life  of  one  of  the  brutes,  and  the  other,  wounded  by 
the  second    shot,  sprang  into  the   bush.     For  half-an- 


240  ON    SAFARI 

hour  the  sportsman  awaited  on  the  platform  any  signs 
of  life  in  the  bushes,  but  detecting  no  movement,  he 
descended  from  his  perch. 

"  He  had  hardly  reached  terra  Jirrt.a,  however,  before 
the  wounded  lion  burst  out  of  the  scrub  and  struck  the 
hunter  a  blow  with  his  paw  which  tore  the  flesh  off  his 
arm  to  the  bone.  The  hunter  was  knocked  to  the 
ground,  and  the  lion,  which  was  evidently  growing 
weaker,  rolled  over  on  the  sjrass  and  then  drao'Q-ed  itself 
back  into  the  bush,  where  its  dead  body  was  found  a 
little  later.  The  hunter  gave  up  watching  for  lions  and 
sought  a  hospital  at  the  coast,  and  the  poor  babu  was 
left  alone  again  in  the  wilderness.  He  told  the  train- 
hands  every  day  that  he  could  not  sleep  at  nights  and 
that  his  nerves  were  badly  shaken.  There  was  nothing 
doing,  however,  for  several  weeks  after  the  great  day 
when  three  lions  had  been  laid  low  within  a  few  rods  of 
the  station.     Then  came  another  nervous  telegram — 

"  '  Extra  urgent. — Track-hand  was  surrounded  by 
two  lions  while  returning  from  signal-box.  He  climbed 
a  telegraph-pole  near  the  water-tank.  He  is  up  there 
yet.  Order  train  to  stop  there  and  take  him  aboard. 
The  traffic-manager  will  please  make  necessary  arrange- 
ments." 

"  The  track-man,  however,  succeeded  in  reaching  the 
station  before  relief  arrived.  For  several  days  the 
telegraph  wire  was  burdened  only  with  routine  dis- 
patches. Then  another  episode  was  proclaimed  in  the 
following  shape — 

"  '  To  guard  and  driver  of  down  train. 

" '  Carriage  of  secretary  is  on  the  siding,  where  he 
shot  a  lion  just  now,  and  others  are  roaring  on  Makindu 
side.  Driver  must  proceed  without  signals  and  stop 
engine  opposite  station.  Guard  must  not  get  out  of  the 
brake-van.' 

"  Later  advices  have  not  yet  come  to  hand,  but  if  any 
station-master  is  finding  life  monotonous  and  longs  to 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   RIVER      241 

have  a  dull  routine  prepared  with  incident  and  adven- 
ture, perhaps  he  may  arrange  to  swap  jobs  with  the 
babu  at  Simba." 

It  may  here  be  worth  mentioning  that,  from  the 
higher  hills  north  of  Simba,  on  a  clear  day,  both  Mount 
Kenya  on  the  north  and  Kilimanjaro  on  the  south  may 
be  seen  at  once. 

Our  own  objective  being,  not  lion,  but  Oryx  callotis, 
we  devoted  scorching  days  to  the  exploration  of  the 
adjoining  veld,  especially  those  lovely  inset  prairies 
bordered  all  round  by  tropical  forest,  which  are  a 
feature  of  this  region,  and  the  favourite  resort  of  oryx. 
Here  we  fell  in  with  herds  of  giant  giraffes,  sometimes 
feeding  in  the  open,  at  others  towering  i\^  among  the 
mimosa  thorn-tree  on  which  they  browse.  These  great 
animals,  however,  have  never  attracted  us,  and  we  left 
them  in  peace. 

Personally  during  these  days  I  never  set  eye  on  an 
oryx,  and  my  brother  but  once — a  single  animal  that, 
being  associated  with  restless  kongoni,  proved  inac- 
cessible. Next  day  we  sought  for  him  far  and  wide,  but 
found  him  not.  To  leave  no  chance  untried,  we  even, 
Simba  having  failed,  travelled  back  to  Makindu,  twenty 
miles,  that  also  proving  blank  ;  then  thirty-nine  miles 
onwards  to  Sultan  Hamud,  where  we  saw  superb  giraffes, 
but  not  a  single  oryx  at  either  point.  Here,  however,  I 
am  anticipating. 

The  Simba  River,  with  its  broad  forests  and 
dense  tropical  bush,  harbours  many  waterbuck  {Cobus 
eUipsiprymnus),  of  which  we  secured  local  specimens, 
one  bull  carrying  fair  horns,  though  none  are  really 
good.  On  two  occasions,  while  stalking,  we  observed 
monkeys,  and  many  small  birds  displayed  gorgeous 
colours—  especially  the  weaver-finches,  rollers,  sunbirds, 
barbets  and  bee-eaters ;  while  fireflies  on  the  river  by 
night  made  a  wondrous  spectacle. 

On  March  19,  after  spending  five  hours  in  vain  search 
of  oryx,  at  11  a.m.  I  shot  a  couple  of  hartebeest  bulls  in 


242  ON   SAFAEI 

easy  stalking  country,  as  we  were  requiring  meat  for  the 
camp.  This  was  an  ideal  park-like  country — a  spacious 
vale  whose  gentle  slopes,  decorated  with  clumps  of  bush, 
forest-trees  and  open  grass  alternately,  dipped  away  to 
a  gorge  far  below — the  whole  being  backed  by  loftier 
ranges  beyond.  While  the  "boys  "  cut  up  meat  and  I 
smoked  in  the  shade  (watching  a  pair  of  wood -hoopoes 
(Irrisor)  and  w^ondering  at  their  climbing  habit,  which 
belied  the  name)  my  new  Somali  hunter,  Yama,  came  up 
and  said,  "  I  see  rhino."  The  beast  was  on  the  opposite 
hillside,  two  miles  away,  standing  on  a  rocky  slope  where 


TWO    WEAVER-FIXCHES   IN    BLACK   AND   GOLD 

{H])2>hantornis  textor,  Pyronulana  taha). 

grew  scattered  thorns.  On  one  of  these  trees  he  was 
breakfasting.  Abandoning  our  two  kongoni  (except  heads 
and  skins),  we  were  soon  ready  ;  but  meantime  "  Kifaru," 
having  finished  his  meal,  slowly  turned,  and  still  more 
slowly  strolled  along  the  mountain-side.  The  thought 
occurred  to  me,  watching,  that  perchance  he  had  performed 
that  selfsame  walk  on  the  morn  of  Waterloo. 

The  descent  into  the  intervening  gorge  and  the 
passage  thereof  were  of  the  roughest — broken  rocks  all 
intercepted  with  dongas  and  terrible  brushwood  ;  and 
ere  we  emerged  the  rhino  had  disappeared.  In  vain  we 
sought.  To  the  right,  in  the  direction  he  had  gone, 
a  great  ravine  rent  the  hill.  This  was  choked  with 
euphorbia,    cactus    and    other     humanly-impenetrable 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   KIYER      243 


shrubs.  Had  he  entered  that,  he  was  lost ;  but  second 
thoughts  negatived  the  j^robability,  for  such  are  not  the 
spots  beloved  of  rhino.  Anxious  moments  succeeded 
when,  on  the  stony  ground,  no  spoor  could  be  discovered, 
and  I  directed  Yama  to  proceed  direct  to  the  thorn-tree 

On  our  wav  thither  we  struck 


of  the  oriQ;inal 


"  view." 


AVOOD-HOOPOE  {Irrisor  erythrorhynchus). 
Brilliant  iu  lustrous  reflections  of  deep  greens  and  purples. 


the  three-toed  spoor,  and,  following  this,  soon  ascertained 
that  (as  anticipated)  the  animal  had  shunned  the  ravine  ; 
turning  to  his  left,  he  had  crossed  over  the  mountain- 
ridoe,  or  "neck,"  hio-h  above. 

Beyond  this  was  a  saucer-shaped  depression  full  of 
low  trees  and  bush,  fairly  thick — not  a  comfortable  spot 
for  tracking,  as  we  could  rarely  see  over  twenty  yards. 
Here,  presently,  we  walked  right  into  the  rhino  in  his 


244  ON   SAFARI 

boudoir  ;  we  stood  actually  at  seven  yards  before  detect- 
ing liim  within.  His  cliamber  was  a  natural  arbour, 
four-square,  formed  by  grouped  trees  whose  foliage 
overarched  it  above,  while  green  brushwood  walled  it  in 
below. 

Though  so  near,  we  could  not  distinguish  the  position 
of  the  beast — it  was  merely  the  indication  of  a  dark 
mass  that  we  saw  ;  and  for  several  trying  minutes  we 
stood,  nervous  lest  some  fickle  puff  of  air  might  betray 
us.  Then  the  waggle  of  a  stumpy  tail  showed  that  we 
were  right  under  his  stern,  the  beast  standing  about 
tw^o-thirds  "  off."  Gently  we  retreated  backwards,  since 
such  quarters  were  too  close,  leaving  neither  time  nor 
room  to  act  had  we  been  detected  ;  and,  besides,  we  thus 
gained  the  advantage  of  rising  ground.  When  some 
twenty  yards  away,  and  already  nearly  full  broadside, 
my  foot  in  backing  touched  a  stone,  and  round  came 
that  huge  head  instantly,  the  broad,  tufted  ears  deflecting 
to  catch  the  slightest  sound.  It  appeared  as  fair  a  chance 
as  was  likely  to  occur  ;  so  I  placed  a  ■450-solid  six  inches 
below  the  visible  ear.  The  indication  of  a  dark  mass 
vanished ;  there  was  a  heavy  fall,  followed  by  groans 
and  thumps  as  of  a  Nasmyth  hammer.  These  I  saw,  on 
running  forward  (lest  the  beast  was  merely  stunned), 
arose  from  the  great  head  convulsively  pounding  the 
earth.  The  second  shot  was  then  placed  in  the  lungs, 
and  within  a  few  moments  all  was  over.  This  was  a 
huge  old  bull,  exceeding  12|^  ft.  in  total  length — almost 
identical  with  that  previously  shot  at  Elmenteita,  though 
measuring  a  foot  less  at  shoulder.  Even  at  the  first, 
distant  view,  I  had  noticed  that  this  was  an  unusually 
long  low  beast.  The  comparative  dimensions  of  the  two 
are  given  at  p.  142.  The  anterior  horn  of  this  rhino  was 
just  under  18  ins. 

The  bedroom  bore  evidence  of  long  occupation,  pro- 
trudino;  branches  at  the  sides  beins^  all  broken  off  short 
— whether  by  accident  or  design — the  floor  worn  flat  and 
smooth,  all  made  snug  and  comfortable,  as  though  the 
rhino  had  occupied  this  koppie  for  a  century.     Yet  the 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   EIYER      245 

beast  itself  was  literally  infested  with  loathsome  vermin. 
Ticks  in  solid  layers  (like  mussels  on  sea-rocks)  clustered 
inside  the  ears,  armpits  and  in  every  fold  of  the  hide ; 
while  cree23ing  and  crab-like  creatures  crawled  and  sidled 
away — repulsive  to  the  last  degree.  A  few  yards  out- 
side this  main  lair,  the  rhino  had  prepared  a  second  bed, 
where  he  could  enjoy  an  open-air  siesta.     The  home- 


PORTERS   BRIXGIXG   IX    EHIXO    HEAD. 


w\ard  march,  burdened  with  that   heavy  head,  besides 
the  tw^o  kongoni,  occupied  three  hot  hours. 

All  that  evening  in  camp  we  had  a  regular  serenade 
of  lions,  concentrating,  it  seemed,  about  the  locality  of 
the  two  abandoned  hartebeests.  We  therefore  decided 
to  reach  the  spot  by  dawn,  and  set  out  at  4.30  a.m. 
On  drawing;  near  the  scene,  after  two  hours'  stumblins; 
in  the  dark,  as  day  broke  we  observed  vultures  sitting 
on  the  trees  above — a  safe  index  that  somethino;  was  at 
the    carcases.     Any  doubts  thereon  were  speedily  dis- 


246  ON   SAFARI 

pellecl  by  tlie  grand  reverberating  roar  of  a  lion,  followed 
by  a  wliinu3'ing  resj^onse — both  apjoarently  close  on  our 
front,  tliough  really  250  yards  ahead.     At  this  crucial 

moment,  as  chance  had  fixed  it,  W ,  misjudging  the 

distance,  and  assuming  that  we  were  already  on  top  of 
the  lions,  pressed  forward  "to  walk  them  up"  on  his 
own.  Nothing  we  could  do  availed  to  check  that  im- 
petuous fatality.  Yama  implored  me,  "  Stop  your 
brother — stop — not  that  way — stalk."  It  was  in  vain  ; 
signals,  whistles,  all  ignored,  it  only  remained  to  us  to 
follow  on  through  grass  not  three  feet  high.  At  a  long 
100  yards  the  lion  stood  up,  gazed,  and  turned  away. 

W fired,  and  I  then  saw  the  flat  head  of  a  lioness 

appear  above  the  grass.  At  my  first  shot  she  rushed  to 
right ;  at  the  second  stopped  dead,  turned  and  bolted  back. 

W shouted  that  both  were  down ;  but  that,  I  knew, 

was  not  the  case ;  and,  on  running  forward,  I  got  a 
clear  view  of  the  lion,  a  magnificent  heavily-maned  beast, 
walking  majestically  with  long-swinging  stride  beyond 
the  river,  500  yards  away.  Against  the  low-rising  sun  he 
stood  out  dark,  silhouetted  as  a  daguerreotype,  his  mane 
all  rough  and  "  touzley,"  and  he  walked  quite  slowly  and 
unconcerned.  There  was  still  a  chance  to  shoot — fair, 
though  remote — but  so  entranced  was  I  with  that  rare 
spectacle,  that  the  rifle  was  forgotten. 

It  was  over — the  best  chance  we  had  at  lion  thrown 
away.  My  brother,  usually  most  cautious  and  pains- 
taking, agrees  with  the  facts  as  above  set  out,  but  con- 
siders All  more  to  blame  in  misjudging  the  distance — it 
was  kismet,  predestined.  As  Yama  insisted,  we  might, 
by  a  careful  stalk,  have  crept  in  as  near  as  we  cared. 

Of  course  we  took  the  spoor  of  both  lions,  assuring 
ourselves  that  neither  had  been  hit.  Not  a  vestige  of 
the  hartebeests  remained  beyond  the  vertebrae  and  some 
big  bones. 

On  the  campward  way  we  sighted  a  single  or3^x  (the 
first  of  the  callotis  kind  that  I  had  seen)  in  company 
with  hundreds  of  kongoni.  I  took  the  stalk,  but  failed  to 
approach  within  500  yards.     At  that  distance,  through 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   KIYER      247 

the  glass,  this  oryx  appeared  distinctly  smaller  than 
Oryx  hcisa,  of  a  warmer  red  in  pelt  and  with  shorter 
horn.  Then  the  restless  hartebeests  took  him  right 
away. 

We  walked  into  a  genet,  which,  after  a  hot  chase 
(once  all  but  run  into  in  the  open),  escaped  by  getting 
to  ground. 

Button-quails  swarmed  in  the  rushy  straths,  the  same 
little  birds  we  had  seen  in  such  abundance  at  Baringo — 
the  kurrichaiue  hemipode  [Ttirnix  lepurana) — and  the 


SILHOUETTED   AGAINST   THE   LOW-RISIKG   SUN. 

francolins  also  differed  from  those  of  the  Athi.  Here 
among  thick  scrub  we  sjDrang  a  big  dark-brown  species, 
Francoliniis  schuetti,  and  also  observed  the  large  bare- 
throated  spur-fowl  (Pternistes  infuscatus).  Bird-life, 
indeed,  was  on  a  wholly  different  plane,  richer,  or  at 
least  more  in  evidence  than  on  the  hioher  table-lands. 
The  rollers,  for  example,  were  here  the  beautiful  African 
lilac-breasted  Coixicias  caudatus,  with  elong-ated  tail- 
feathers  (as  shown  in  the  sketch),  replacing  the  European 
roller  that  we  had  observed  near  Nairobi.  Similarly,  the 
hoopoes  at  Simba  all  belonged  to  the  Ethiopian  race, 
Uiyupa  africana,  a  species  new  to  me,  and  easily  distin- 
guished by  its  dark,  unspotted  wing  and  dull-red  body- 
colour.     The    British    hoopoe,    like    the    British   roller, 


248 


ON   SAFARI 


chooses  the  higher  groiuid  for  its  winter  quarters, 
although  I  noticed  a  single  common  hoopoe  at  Sultan 
Hamud  on  March  22.  An  allied  family,  the  wood- 
hoopoes  {Irrisor),  birds  of  dark  plumage  shot  with 
brilliant  metallic  reflections,  and  with  long  cuneate  tails, 
were  also  noticeable  here,  and  remarkable  for  the  scansorial 
powers  they  have  developed.     Twice  we  observed  them 


^CA^s, 


LILAC-BKEASTED   ROLLER    [Corcicios  Caudatus). 

A  study  in  vivid  blues,  greens  and  chestnut. 

climbing  on  tree-trunks  in  search  of  insects,  quite  like 
woodpeckers,  as  sketched  on  p.  243.  These  are  noisy 
birds,  attracting  one's  attention  far  away  in  the  bush, 
and  then,  when  disturbed,  flying  ofl"  with  discordant  cries. 
Doves  and  green  pigeons  ( Vinago)  abounded. 

It  is,  of  course,  impossible  even  roughly  to  describe 
the  bird-life  of  a  wide  region  on  so  brief  an  experience 
as  ours — especially  when,  during  our  short  sojourn,  birds 
formed  but  a  secondary  object.     Still  one  has  always 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA  KIVER       249 


one  eye  to  spare  for  unknown  feathered  objects,  and  the 
following  notes  may  interest. 

One  small  species  specially  attracted  attention  by  its 
strangely  vibrant  flight,  producing  a  rattling  sound  as 
of  some  insect.  This  was  a  bush-lark  (Mirafrajischeri), 
and  the  curious  vibrant  rustle  is  a  seasonal  sign,  pro- 
duced by  the  rapid  clapping  of  its  short  rounded 
wings  beneath  the  body  as  the  bird  shoots  upwards 
in  spiral  flight.  The  effect  is  remarkable  enough  even 
in  March,  but  during  the  breeding  season  (November) 
this  singular  "drumming"  is  audible  up  to  hundreds 
of  yards. 


A  PAIR  OF  BisHOP-BiKDS  {Pyromelana  sunclevalli). 
Gorgeous  in  orange-red,  with  velvety-black  points  and  golden-brown  mantle. 

Another  small  bird  of  brilliant  canary-like  yellow 
also  shoots  up  in  air  displaying  gorgeous  hues  in  the  sun- 
light, but  without  the  accompanying  vibration.  This  is 
one  of  the  infinite  family  of  weaver-finches,  iJ?/p/^an^orms 
suhaurea  by  name.  An  even  more  brilliantly-coloured 
weaver  was  also  common  along  the  river,  a  bird  of  bright 
gamboge  with  orange  head — Xanthophilus  hojeri. 
Most  of  the  gaily-plumaged  finches  one  sees  prove  to 
be  either  weavers  or  their  cousins,  the  bishop-birds ;  yet, 
in  the  reverse,  many  of  this  extensive  family  are  quite 
dull  in  colours — as,  for  example,  the  social  weaver-finch, 
commonest  of  them  all.  The  massed  nests  of  these  latter, 
hundreds   under  one  roof,  fill  whole   trees ;  others,  as 


250 


ON   SAFARI 


before  described,  build  separate  pendulous  nests — each 
a  distinct  structure,  but  often  banging  by  the  dozen 
together.  Here  at  Simba,  by  the  riverside,  we  found 
weavers'  nests  of  cpiite  different  architecture.  These 
were  domed  nests  with  side-entrance,  neatly  fixed  on 
tall  flowering  reeds — some  on  a  single  stem ;  others  had 
two  or  three  reeds  passing  through  their  structure. 


NESTS   OF   WEAVEK-FINCHES   ON   THE   SIMBA   KIVEK. 

There  was,  of  course,  the  customary  profusion  of  gor- 
geous tropical  hues — bee-eaters  resplendent  in  turcjuoise 
and  carmine ;  kingfishers  in  azure  and  orange ;  golden 
orioles ;  and,  beyond  all  in  brightness,  the  lovely  jewelled 
sunbirds.  Forest-ojDen  and  flowery  glade  gleamed  with 
these  gaily-feathered  atoms  as  they  hovered  over  some 
open  bloom,  alighting  for  an  instant  to  probe  the  calyx 
with  long  curved  bill.  One  species  had  an  emerald  head, 
set  off  by  dark  body  ;  in  another  the  head  and  back 
were   black,    breast    bright   scarlet,    all   glancing   with 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   EIVER      251 


metallic   reflections ;    others  were   arrayed   in  crimsons 
and  greens,  gold  and  purples. 

Barbets  with  contrasted  colours  and  rino-ino-  voice 
are  always  in  evidence,  and  there  were  woodpeckers 
and  shrikes,  drongos,  babblers  and  colics.  By  the  river 
I  got  a  sight  of  a  bnsh-cuckoo,  and  we  heard  his  note  at 
night.  But  the  only  other  birds  I  shall  specifically 
mention  were  the  hornbills.     These  w^ere  not  the  big 


'•^.■^^ 


A  HOENBILL  AT  SIMBA  (probably  Lophoceros  fasciatus). 


black  fellows  of  the  Mau  Forest,  but  of  the  smaller  family 
defined  as  Loj^hoceros — quaint  creatures,  all  bill,  wings 
and  tail.  From  tree  to  tree  they  sweep  in  silent 
undulated  flight,  alternating  half-a-dozen  heavy  flaps 
with  long  drooping  glides.  The  huge  bill,  always  dis- 
proportionate in  appearance,  on  alighting  seems  to 
upset  equilibrium  altogether,  and  much  flapping  and 
balancing  is  often  required  to  restore  it.  One  species, 
as  roughly  sketched,  displayed  conspicuous  white  spots 
on  the  wings,  and  also  on  the  outer  tail-feathers. 


252  ON   SAFARI 


Makindu 

This  is  a  country  of  close  scrub  and  bush,  almost 
viewless,  and  at  this  season  (March)  bare  of  game 
beyond  a  few  kongoni,  some  waterbuck  and  small 
antelopes.  There  was  old  spoor  of  giraffe,  and  also  of 
eland,  more  recent ;  but  we  saw  neither,  nor  any  sign  of 
Oryx  ccdlotis,  of  which  we  were  specially  in  search. 

This  dense  bush  swarmed  with  guinea-fowl  and  bio; 
brown  francolins  (i^  schuetti),  as  well  as  the  great  l^are- 
throated  spur-fowl  [Pternistes  infuscatus),  red  as 
cock-plieasants,  that  clattered  as  tliey  rose.  There 
appeared  to  be  two  distinct  species  of  this  latter  ;  and 
we  also  observed  hornbills,  coucal  or  bush-cuckoo,  green 
pigeons,  helmet-shrikes  with  floppy  flight,  and  most  of 
the  other  birds  already  recorded  at  Simba. 

A  few  miles  out,  completely  surrounded  by  bush, 
we  came  on  the  Government  farm,  where  cotton,  fil)re 
and  other  produce  were  growing  luxuriantly,  and  where 
there  was  abundant  water  with  a  complete  system  of 
irrigation.  Yet  it  was  abandoned — presumably  for  some 
sufiicient  reason,  though  none  was  apparent.  Makindu, 
when  it  formed  "  rail-head,"  had  some  little  importance, 
but  has  now  fallen  from  its  (never  very)  high  estate. 

Since  writing  the  above,  I  read  in  Blue-book,  March 
1907,  that  Makindu  Farm  was  finally  abandoned  on 
March  31,  1906 — a  few  days  after  we  were  there — 
owing  to  the  extreme  unhealthiness  of  the  site,  the 
managers  and  staff  being  constantly  down  with  fever, 
and  the  whole  stock  of  cattle  killed  by  the  tsetse-fly. 
"The  natives  of  the  neighbouring  hills,"  adds  the  Blue- 
book,  with  fine  official  humour,  "  have  confined  their 
interest  in  the  farm  to  raidino-  most  of  the  live  stock." 


o 


Sultan  Hamud 

A  game-like  country,  prettily  situated  in  a  wide  gap 
between  enclosing  mountains.     Herds  of  giraffe  charac- 


5  5 

1  "5  >          111 

»  »  O  \l      » 

)  J  •         .1       • 


3    '   ) 

3        3       '3>       3  11^'  '    33'      '    3     '     '         " 


a  .^ 


'■'■Sks 


GIRAFFES   ON    ATHI    lUVER. 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   RIVER       253 

terise  this  neiglibourhood,  tlieir  chief  haunts  being  on 
the  south — that  is,  within  the  "Reserve,"  though  they 
wander  everywhere.  We  saw,  besides,  most  of  the 
ordinary  game,  but  not  a  sign  of  oryx.  A  small 
antelope  that  I  hit  among  bush,  merely  breaking  a 
hind-leg  low  down,  gave  oj)portunity  for  a  wonderful 
exhibition  of  spooring  by  Yama  and  Salim,  who  held  its 
tiny  hoof-marks  through  the  roughest  ground  and  long 
grass  for  quite  half-a-mile.  It  j)roved  to  be  a  steinbuck, 
female,  weight  23|-  lbs.  clean.  To  complete  our  collec- 
tions, we  each  shot  a  hartebeest  cow  or  two  here  [Buhalis 
cokei),  my  brother  securing  an  unusually  fine  specimen, 
the  horns  exceeding  17  ins.  The  Coke's  hartebeests  of 
Simba  varied  in  type  from  those  of  the  iVthi  Plains  in 
their  darker  red  pelts  and  in  the  form  of  horn.  Those 
of  the  Athi  animals  are  distinctly  ano-ular  and  bracket- 
shaped,  whereas  at  Simba  the  horns  display  a  more 
even  symmetrical  curve,  as  shown  in  drawing  on  p.  254, 
which  also  illustrates  the  upright  growth  of  the  horns 
in  an  immature  example  of  this  species.  I  shot  my 
second  zebra  here,  a  stallion,  but  smaller  than  those 
obtained  on  the  Athi  and  in  the  Rift.  Several  zebra 
seen  here  were  quite  red  in  colour,  the  result  of  rolling 
in  the  ruddy  soil. 

No  two  zebras  are  alike  in  their  striping.  Not  only 
so,  but  each  zebra  differs  in  pattern  on  one  side  as  com- 
pared with  the  other.  This  is  easily  seen  on  examining 
a  flat  skin.  Three  such  lie  before  me,  and  in  no  single 
stripe  is  there  regularity  or  repetition.  Though  corre- 
sponding pairs  of  stripes  start  from  the  dorsal  ridge  more 
or  less  equal — never  quite  so — yet  each  individual  stripe 
quickly  develops  a  different  form.  Should  that  on  the 
right  be  carried  continuously  down  to  the  ventral  line, 
its  fellow  on  the  left  wiU  either  bifurcate  or  blend  with 
its  immediate  neighbour,  whether  in  front  or  behind. 
Another  may  break  off  abruptly,  or  perhaps  be  inter- 
rupted by  a  broken  white  line.  Not  a  single  pair  runs 
similar  throughout,  though  a  curious  co-relation  is  nearly 
always  apparent. 


254 


ON   SAFARI 


This  by-play  is  not  coufined  to  tlie  main  body-stripes, 
but  is  specially  conspicuous  in  the  network  of  minor 


HEADS   OF   coke's  HARTEBEEST— (MALES). 

Left,  from  the  Athi ;  right,  from  Simba  ;  below,  immature. 

bands  on  quarters  and  legs,  where  Nature  runs  riot  in 
her  wild  patchwork  patterns,  all  studiedly  unequal — a 
white  islanded  spot  on  one  side  balanced  by  an  open 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   KIYER      255 

gulf  on  the  otlier,  or  a  convolution  corresponding  with 
a  break.  The  one  consistent  feature  is  constant  dis- 
similarity. 

Beyond  the  rocky  ranges  to  the  north  are  splendid 
stretches  of  mixed  woodland  and  pasturage  ;  but  these, 
in  March,  are  devoid  of  game. 

The  heat  at  this  period  passed  description,  and  the 
discomfort  was  accentuated  by  torrential  rain-bursts 
daily,  producing  a  plague  of  vicious-biting  insects  and 
mosquitoes  in  millions.  We,  having  mosquito-curtains 
(mine  were  rigged  here  for  the  first  time  this  year), 
partially  escaped  that  terror  ;  but  not  a  man  of  our 
safari  could  get  a  wink  of  sleep  at  nights,  and  general 
discontent  prevailed.  Yama,  moreover,  went  down 
with  fever ;  and  we  suffered  also  from  an  irritating  red 
rash — said  to  be  called  "  prickly  heat " — though  I 
attributed  it  to  a  plague  of  small  grey  caterpillars  with 
arched  backs  that  span  webs  like  spiders  and  so  lowered 
themselves  in  shoals  from  the  trees  above.  We  habitu- 
ally dined  and  lived  al  fresco  beneath  these  trees,  thus 
becoming  an  easy  prey  to  these  noxious  beasts,  that 
caused  irritation  wherever  they  crawled.  Then  we 
began  to  dream  once  more  of  the  cool  moorlands  of 
Northumbria  and  its  swirling  salmon- streams ! 

Such  were  our  miseries,  that  at  eight  one  evening — to 
avoid  delay  awaiting  the  thrice-a-week  passenger- train — 
we  fled  in  a  "  C.G.,"  that  is,  a  covered  goods-van,  an 
iron  box  on  wheels,  and  reached  Yoi  (altitude  1,830  ft). 
at  9.30  next  morning,  after  a  terrible'  night's  jolting  and 
shunting^  on  a  freio-ht- train.  The  discomforts  of  that 
nit!:ht  were,  moreover,  accentuated  when,  as  the  train 
started,  our  "boys"  shoved  into  our  truck  the  (very 
high)  rhino  head,  which  in  the  darkness  had  nearly  been 
left  behind  on  the  platform. 


256  ON   SAFARI 

Vol 

There  is  certainly  a  period  when  Oryx  callotis 
frequents  this  region,  and  the  same  applies  to  Simba 
and  Sultan  Hamud.  But  March  is  not  that  period. 
Hence  here  again  our  continued  search  proved  fruitless. 
Not  an  oryx  was  seen.  The  true  home  of  this  species 
lies  further  south — towards  Kilimanjaro  and  in  the 
German  territory. 

Having  secured  two  Wateita  guides  who  knew  the 
bush  and  assured  us  they  could  show  us  at  any  rate 
lesser  koodoo,  eland,  and  I  knew  not  what  else,  we 
scoured  the  bush-country  lying  towards  the  west  below 
the  mountains.  It  was  fairly  thick,  though  opens  were 
interspersed,  but  at  this  season  almost  bare  of  game 
save  Hinde's  dikdik  [Madoqua  hindei)  and  a  few 
impala. 

The  presence  of  game  at  other  seasons  was,  however, 
attested  by  the  numicrous  game-traps  devised  in  olden 
days  by  the  savage  mind. 

Strong  ramparts  of  aloes,  thorns  and  other  impass- 
able shrubs  everywhere  traversed  the  bush.  These  had 
probably  been  planted  in  the  first  instance,  but  were 
now  growing  naturally  enough,  and  lying  athwart  our 
path,  obliged  us  to  seek  a  passage  elsewhere.  This, 
however,  proved  simple,  for  presently  an  opening  would 
be  discovered  leading  through  the  obstruction.  Here 
was  the  trap.  This  narrow  passage-way  was  occupied 
by  a  deep  pitfall.  These  were  now  open  and  conspicuous 
enough ;  but  one  could  readily  imagine  how  fatal  they 
must  have  been  to  game  when  deftly  concealed  by  a 
treacherous  blind  of  branches,  grass,  etc. 

On  the  outskirts  of  the  forest  lying  under  the  rocky 
mountain-range  to  the  west  we  enjoyed  our  only  view 
of  the  lesser  koodoo.  It  was  but  a  glimpse,  for  we 
"jumped"  this  beautiful  antelope  a  long  hundred  yards 
ahead,  and  though  we  spent  the  rest  of  that  morning 
following  the  spoor,  we  saw  him  no  more. 

There  was  old  sign  and  spoor  of  eland,  and  still  more 


HUNTING   ON   THE   SIMBA   RIVER       257 

of  buffalo — the  latter  quite  fresh — but  that  was  all  we 
saw  of  either  animal.  There  were  chameleons  in  this 
bush,  and  I  noticed  a  kind  of  squirrel  not  seen  before. 

Dining  at  the  Dalv  bungalow  one  evening  were 
three  white  men,  all  singularly  silent  and  preoccupied. 
Various  topics  were  mooted,  but  all  fell  flat.  At  night 
we  were  surprised  to  observe  that  two  of  these  men 
went  to  bed  in  their  boots,  and  with  rifles,  swords  and 
such-like  lethal  weapons  at  hand.  We  learned  later 
that  one  of  the  three  was  under  arrest  for  murder, 
the  other  two  being  responsible  for  his  safe-keeping  !  A 
more  agreeable  meeting  was  with  Rev.  J.  A.  Wray,  w^ho 
for  twenty-three  years  has  worked  as  a  missionary  at 
Sagalla  in  the  hills  above  Voi,  and  with  whom  we 
travelled  to  Mombasa. 

Leaving  that  port  by  the  Messageries  Maritimes' 
steamer  Djemnah,  we  reached  home  towards  the  end 
of  April. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

THE   UNSEEN   WORLD 

None  can  wander  throu2;li  this  Continent  of  Africa 
without  beino;  struck  with  the  evidence  of  things  not 
seen.  The  things  one  does  see  so  bewilder  in  their 
variety,  that  to  most  of  us — meaning  the  average 
traveller  or  big-game  hunter — there  remains  scant  time 
for  investigating  others  or  even  indulging  in  speculative 
thoughts  concerning  them. 

For  example,  not  a  book,  hardly  even  a  chapter  on 
Africa  but  mentions  the  ant-hills.  These  are  omnipresent 
and  of  all  shapes  and  sizes,  varying  between  conical  or 
sub-rounded  mounds  to  tall  shafts  like  factory  chimneys. 
But  how  rarely  does  one  see  an  ant  or  termite  anywhere 
near  them,  or  building  a  new  one.  Did  ants  really 
construct  all  these  ?  If  so,  why  are  many  of  the  half- 
round  mounds  pierced  by  dozens  of  vertical  shafts, 
several  inches  in  diameter,  and  connecting  below  (as  one 
can  see  by  working  into  them,  or  by  injecting  smoke) 
with  extensive  horizontal  galleries  beneath — perfect 
labyrinths  ?  What  can  ants  want  with  tunnels  like 
these — as  big  as  rabbit-holes  ?  Obviously  they  belong 
to  some  other  creature ;  but  you  never  see  him,  though 
you  may  dig  for  hours. 

Again,  those  twenty-foot  factory  chimneys  aforesaid 
are  hollow  throuo-hout — like  the  real  thino; — and  thus 
serve  the  wanderino-  hunter  as  ovens  for  bread-bakino;. 
Certainly  no  ant  ever  contemplated  such  a  use,  yet 
none  ever  appears  to  resent  it.  One  sees  no  ants  near 
them. 

258 


THE   UNSEEN   AVORLD  259 

Such  questions  may  evidence  crass  ignorance  ;  for 
beyond  doubt  the  hicking  answers  ^Yill  be  found  printed 
somewhere,  though  not  on  the  vekl,  where  I  write  these 
notes. 

In  that  sense,  at  least,  I  always  assured  my  com- 
panion, who,  whenever  we  encountered  some  noxious 
reptile  or  extra-hideous  insect,  would  invariably  ask, 
"Are  you  sure  that  tit  at  has  been  catalogued?" 

Then  one  cannot  walk  many  leagues  over  African 
hinterlands  without  coming  upon  holes — immense  holes, 
regular  dens.  What,  in  wonder's  name,  made  that  f  you 
ask.  The  answer,  as  a  rule,  will  be.  Oh,  that's  a 
wart-hog's  hole.  Possibly  it  is ;  that  is,  it  is  now 
occupied  by  one  of  those  animals.  But  surely  no 
wart-hog  originally  excavated  it,  for  a  pig  is  not  a  digger 
— he  is  not  "  fossorial,"  which  is,  I  see,  the  technical 
term  ;  and  has  probably  adopted  a  subterranean  habitat 
owiuo-  to  the  facilities  here  afforded  him  of  securing 
desirable  residences  ready-made  and  no  ground-rent  to 
pay  in  the  shape  of  labour.  Jackals  also  and  porcupines 
live  in  holes;  so,  too,  do  civ^ets,  mongoose  and  the  like. 
But  all  these  are  small  beasties,  and  none  of  them  recjuire 
tunnels  of  these  dimensions.  What,  I  ask  again,  made 
that  scandalous  hole  ?  Having  silenced  flippant  super- 
ficial theories  in  respect  of  pigs,  dogs  and  cats,  at  length 
comes  a  more  serious  answer.  The  excavator  was  an 
ant-bear — in  Dutch,  an  aard-vaark  or  earth-pig.  This 
I  have  been  so  often  assured  that  the  solution  comes  to 
bear  a  sort  of  impress  of  truth.  But,  if  so,  what 
numbers  of  these  beasts  there  must  be  !  Yet  during  my 
three  years'  wandering  amongst  them,  I  have  never  set 
eyes  on  the  personality  of  the  said  ant-bear,  nor  met 
any  one  who  has  done  so,  or  could  give  even  the  faintest 
description  of  what  the  fabled  creature  was  like  if  you 
did  see  him. 

I  am  not  (of  course)  seriously  doubting  the  existence 
of  our  unseen  neighbour.  Far  from  that,  since  in- 
dubitable proof  lies  before  me  that  some  one  has  actually 
captured  a  specimen — and  dissected  him  !     As  witness 


260  ON   SAFARI 

the  following,  wliicli  I  extract  from  Flower  and  Lydekker's 
Mammals :  Living  and  Extinct  (p.  208) — 

"  Family  Orycteropodid.^ 

"  External  surface  scantily  covered  with  bristle-like 
hairs.  Teeth  numerous,  apparently  heterodont,  diphyo- 
dont,  and  of  peculiar  and  complex  structure,  being 
traversed  by  a  number  of  parallel  vertical  pulp-canals. 
Lumber  vertebrae  with  no  accessory  zygapophyses. 
Femur  with  a  third  trochanter.  Fore-feet  without 
poUex  but  all  the  other  digits  well  developed  .  .  . 
suited  to  digging,  the  plantar  surfaces  resting  on  the 
ground  in  walking.  Hind- feet  with  five  subequal  toes. 
Mouth  elongated  and  tubular.  Tongue  subvermiform. 
Uterus  bicornuate.  Placenta  broadly  zonular.  Feeding 
on  animal  substances.  Terrestrial  and  fossorial  in  habits. 
Now  mainly  limited  to  the  Ethiopian  region." 

Such  descriptions  evidence  the  depth  and  thorough- 
ness of  scientific  research,  but  hardly  help  one  to  form  any 
rational  conception  of  what  the  actual  animal  resembles 
in  life. 

Since  writing  the  above,  I  have  at  length  met  with 
the  aarcl-vaark — in  a  glass  case  in  Bergen  Museum  ! 
Upon  viewing  his  personal  appearance  (as  here  roughly 
sketched)  regrets  at  having  missed  seeing  him  in  Africa 
diminished.  One  almost  felt  grateful  at  meeting  thus, 
on  neutral  ground. 

Another  creature  which,  although  common,  is 
absolutely  and  always  unseen,  is  the  aard-wolf — 
earth-wolf,  in  Boer  nomenclature.  This  again  is 
strictly  nocturnal  and  subterranean  in  habit.  By 
descrij^tion  of  systematists,  he  is  of  the  Hyaenas ;  yet 
with  the  remarkable  exception  that  his  teeth  are  feeble 
and  even  rudimentary.  Strange  are  Nature's  facts 
when  a  hyaena  with  "rudimentary"  teeth  has  to  be 
conceived,  since  one  never  sees  the  beast  in  person. 
This  is  a  handsome  animal,  as  his  portrait  at  p.  113  shows. 


THE  UNSEEN   WORLD 


261 


There  are,  however,  members  of  this  "  unseen 
world  "  of  which  once  or  twice  in  a  lifetime  one  may 
catch  a  fugitive  glimpse.  Thus,  as  above  recorded 
(p.  210),  we  twice  saw  and  once  actually  captured  a 
porcupine.  Now  this  animal  must  be  extremely  abundant 
in  Africa ;  yet  so  rarely  is  he  seen  that,  on  my  mention- 
ing the  fact  just  stated  to  Mr.  F.  J.  Jackson  at  Nairobi, 
he  told  me  that  never  once  in  his  lifelong  experience  of 
East  Africa  and  its  big  game  had  he  so  much  as  seen 
a  single  porcupine  alive  ! 


AARD-VAAPaC — SKETCHED    IN    EEKGEN   MUSEUM. 


Once  when  "  partridge  "-shooting  over  dogs  in  the 
South,  my  two  pointers  had  "set"  dead  at  something 
which  their  attitude  of  quivering  excitement — suggesting 
some  slight  "  funk  " — clearly  showed  was  not  the  harm- 
less fraucolin  of  our  search.  Out  bounced  a  huge 
brindled  civet,  looking  quite  double  its  natural  size 
owing  to  the  prominent  erectile  crest  wdiich  stuck 
straight  up  along  the  whole  length  of  the  beast,  from 
nape  of  neck  to  tip  of  tail.  Instantly  the  hunting 
instinct  in  both  dogs — steady  enough  on  game — • 
reasserted  itself.  In  short,  they  broke-in,  thus  spoil- 
ing my  shot ;  and  after  infinite  digging,  shifting  tons 
of  earth  from  the  hole  wherein  the  civet  had  sought 
refuge — it    made    no    attempt    to    "  tree " — we    were 


262 


ON   SAFARI 


reluctantly  compelled  to  abandon  tliat  prize.  The 
following  month,  however,  our  Kaffirs  (this  was  in 
the  Transvaal)  brought  in  another  civet  which  they  had 
killed  with  assegais — quite  how,  I  never  could  understand. 
Another  animal  of  which  one  may  get  an  occasional 
glimpse  is  the  genet,  which  in  East  Africa  I  have  twice 
chased  to  OTound  and  once  to  a  hollow  tree.  On  the 
latter  occasion  the  gun-bearer  who  w^as  with  me  put  in 
his  hand,  and  though  badly  bitten,  pulled  the  genet  out. 


.,^" 


z^- 


r/^te 


CIVET. 


This,  however,  can  hardly  be  defined  as  belonging  to 
the  unseen  world,  being  partly  arboreal,  and  on  one 
occasion  in  the  Transvaal,  my  friend  Ingle,  spying  one 
in  the  fork  of  a  tree,  placed  a  '303  bullet  in  its  eye,  and 
the  skin  lies  before  me  now.  Then  there  are  the 
mongoose  tribes — swarms  of  them  ;  yet  how  rarely  one 
sees  these,  whether  in  Africa  or  Spain.  In  the  latter 
land,  if  attended  by  one  who  knows,  and  prepared  with 
pick  and  spade  to  shift  considerable  portions  of  earth's 
superficies,  one  may  capture  half-a-dozen  in  a  single 
burrow.  In  Africa  the  only  mongoose  met  with  are 
mentioned  at  p.  33  above. 

A  reclusive  neighbour  in  South  Africa  (but  not  so 


THE   UNSEEN   WORLD 


263 


common  in  East)  is  the  ratel  {MeUivora  ratel),  allied  to 
the  badgers,  which  is  another  tenant  of  these  mysterious 
holes,  and  which  varies  a  diet  of  roots  and  honey  by 
digging  from  his  grave  the  lightly-buried  Kaffir  ;  but 
which  retires  long  before  dawn  to  the  depths  of  the 
earth.  Our  British  badger  also  possesses  a  "  sweet 
tooth,"  and  in  summer  digs  up  bees'  and  wasps'  nests. 
The  ratel,  being  short-legged  like  a  badger,  has  no 


,^''% 


ji' 


„m-^' 


EATEL. 


speed  of  foot ;  and  if  found  in  the  open,  can  be  run 
down  by  an  active  man.  But  once  it  finds  itself 
cornered,  it  turns  directly,  open-mouthed,  upon  its 
pursuer,  in  the  pluckiest  way.  Mr.  Selous  tells  me  that 
in  his  elephant-hunting  days  he  frec[uently  ran  them 
down,  and  in  every  case  they  turned  and  attacked. 

The  above  are  a  few — how  many  more  there  may  be 
I  know  not — of  the  animals  whose  presence  and  handi- 
work is  ever  in  evidence,  but  which  themselves  belong 
to  an  unseen  world. 

When  the  "  sportsman "  in  British  East  Africa 
(that  is,  as  so  by  law  defined,  the  travelling  hunter  who 
has  paid  up  his  £50  shooting-licence — since  otherwise 


264  ON   SAFARI 

the  word  is  to  me  almost  a  term  of  opprobrium) 
studies  his  copy  of  the  Game-ordinances,  he  notices  in 
the  schedules  of  game-beasts  some  names  that  puzzle, 
others  that  surprise.  The  white-tailed  gnu,  for  example, 
he  finds  is  barred  :  Init  that  he  reads  with  considerable 
complacency,  knowing  that  the  species  does  not  exist 
(and  never  did)  within  some  thousands  of  miles  of  the 
equator  ;  nor  will  the  express  exclusion  of  the  mountain 
zebra  and  the  wild  ass  from  his  game-list  concern  him, 
since  neither  of  these  inhabits  the  British  Protectorate. 
The  mention  of  "  chevrotain "  {DorcatJieriinn)  may 
cause  a  passing  qualm  ;  but  it  is  only  when  he  reaches 
"  Schedule  111  "  that  he  realises  to  the  full  the  advantages 
and  powers  conferred  on  him.  For  in  that  category  he 
finds  specified  both  our  unseen  friends  aforesaid — the 
aard-vaark  and  the  aard-wolf  !  True,  he  is  limited  to  two 
of  each  species  ;  but  within  the  space  of  a  brief  twelve- 
month, two  might  prove  more  than  an  ample  allowance. 

In  the  next  Schedule  (IV)  the  "settler" — as 
legally  distinguished  from  the  "  sportsman  "  aforesaid — 
is,  it  appears,  prohibited  from  taking  even  a  single 
specimen  of  either  of  those  reclusive  beasts.  That  may 
possibly  be  ascribed  to  one  of  those  bright  flashes  of 
humour  that  are  occasionally  permitted  to  illumine 
ofiicial  routine.  For  it  seems  conceivable  that  a  settler, 
presuming  that  he  was  permanently  resident  and 
prepared  to  devote  his  whole  time  to  the  effort  (with 
pick,  spade  and  shovel),  might,  within  a  5^ear,  succeed  in 
bringing  to  the  light  of  day  one  of  these  mysterious 
members  of  the  unseen  world  I  ^ 

The  African  scrub  abounds  with  small  cats  and  a 
hundred  other  nocturnals  that  one  rarely  or  never  sees, 
and  whose  very  existence  eyesight  alone  would  never 
give  cause  to  suspect.  At  one  camp  we  found  ourselves 
alongside  Mr.  Vernon  Shaw^-Kennedy,  who,  with  Mr. 
Ateley  of  the  Field-Columbian  Lluseum  at  Chicago,  was 
collectingj  the  smaller  mammalia  for  that  2:reat  American 

1  The  schedules  have  since  been  altered,  but  perhaps  my  mild 
banter  may  stand. 


THE   UNSEEN   WORLD 


265 


institution.  Tlie  series  of  mice-like  and  rat-like  creatures, 
moles,  voles,  squirrels  and  others,  arboreal,  terrestrial 
and  aquatic,  which  they  had  amassed,  was  a  revelation 
to  us  of  the  infinite  variety  of  this  unseen  world  on  the 
minor  scale. 


WHITE-BEAEDED   GNU. 
Outside  span  of  horns,  28^  ins. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

BIG   GAME   AND   ITS   BIRD-PROTECTORS 

We  are  apt  to  consider  a  task  in  hand  as  more 
difficult  than  a  former  object  already  achieved.  Thus  in 
Africa  the  stalker,  crawling  over  an  adamant  veld,  all 
but  devoid  of  cover  or  "  advantage,"  may  recall  with 
envy — recall  as  easy  by  comparison — the  approach  to  big 
game  on  the  rug-ored  highlands  or  sheltering  rock-ridges 
of  Europe.  He  may  even  sigh  for  the  soft  sphagnum 
through  which  in  Scotland  the  deer-stalker  worms  his 
final  advance  ;  yet,  at  the  time,  the  latter  cannot  be  said 
really  to  enjoy  the  sensation  of  moss- water  penetrating 
to  his  chest. 

But  in  Africa — and  especially  in  the  South,  under 
the  Tropic  of  Capricorn,  to  which  regions  these  remarks 
more  particularly  refer — there  is  a  specialised  difficulty 
attending  the  stalker  that  is  unknown  in  Europe.  That 
difficulty  springs  from  the  habits  of  certain  birds,  that 
make  it  their  business  to  warn  game  of  the  presence  of 
danger. 

True,  in  Scotland  and  in  Norway  alike,  the  untimely 
flight  of  grouse,  or  a  white  hare  skipping  U2:)hill,  may, 
and  often  does,  give  a  clue  to  otherwise  unsuspecting 
game.  But  that  is  not  the  specialised  difficulty  above 
mentioned.  That  is  merely  incidental,  and  forms  an 
everyday  risk  of  the  still-hunter  the  world  over.  In 
Africa  that  risk  is  fully  as  pronounced  as  elsewhere  ;  for 
here  the  ubiquitous  francolin  and  guinea-fowl,  the  spur- 
wing  and  various  other  plovers  (with  sundry  mammals), 
each  and  all  form  extraneous  sources  of  danger  to  the 

266 


BIG   GAME   AND    ITS   BIED-PEOTECTORS     267 

stalker.  In  all  such  cases,  however,  the  mischief  is  done 
by  accident  and  not  by  design. 

That  any  birds  should  systematically  set  themselves 
to  spoil  sport  by  warning  wild  animals  of  the  presence  of 
man,  appears  inconceivable  ;  and  the  motives  that  actuate 
different  species  to  give  such  alarm  form  an  interesting 
study. 

The  chief  of  these  bird-nuisances,  and  the  most 
persistent,  is  the  little  honey- guide  [Indicator),  a 
creature  no  larger  than  a  sparrow,  which  latter  it  also 
resembles  in  colour  and  general  appearance.  ^      Now  this 


bird's  first  object  in  life  is  to  plunder  the  nests  of  wild 
bees  and  wasps — not  for  the  honey,  but  for  the  larvae, 
the  grubs  and  the  young  which  these  nests  contain. 
But  bees'  nests  are  fortressed  in  strong  places — in  hollow 
trees  or  clefts  of  rock  quite  beyond  the  reach  of  small 
birds.  The  honey-guide,  however,  has  reasoned  out 
this  problem  to  a  point  conducive  to  its  personal 
interests.  A  human  being,  the  bird  knows,  cares  nothing 
for  bee-grubs  ;  but  is  not  averse  to  a  haul  of  wild  honey. 
He  is,  it  also  knows,  usually  provided  with  hatchet  and 
crowbar.  Hence  if  that  human  being  can  be  induced  to 
follow  the  feathered  guide  to  a  bees'  nest,  he  will  certainly 

1  The  resemblance  is  merely  superficial,  for  the  honey-guide  differs 
essentially  from  sparrows  and  all  other  small  birds,  pai-ticularly  in 
being  zygodactylic — that  is,  it  has  two  toes  in  front  and  two  behind, 
as  is  the  case  with  parrots,  cuckoos,  etc. 


268.  ON    SAFAEI 

hew  open  the  tree  or  split  the  rock,  when  the  bird  is 
assured  of  its  share  of  the  spoiL 

The  result,  in  practice,  is  fatal  to  the  silent  stalker. 
No  sooner  does  the  honey-guide  perceive  him,  than  up 
it  flies,  rattling  out  a  harsh  incessant  chatter — an  invita- 
tion to  man  to  share  sweet  plunder ;  but  a  warning  of 
danger  to  every  wild  beast  within  hearing,  for  all 
instinctively  interpret  its  precise  significance.  You  can- 
not drive  that  feathered  fiend  away  :  it  follows  on  from 
tree  to  tree  ;  you  cannot  shoot  it  for  obvious  reasons.  It 
will  never  leave  you  all  day,  until  you  agree  to  follow  it 
and  do  its  bidding  I 

The  most  aggravating  phase — indeed  humiliating — 
is  when  the  bird  discovers  the  hunter  in  the  midst  of  a 
stalk,  or  perchance  towards  its  climax.  Then  all  the 
hard  work  and,  it  may  be,  a  coveted  trophy  is  lost.  In 
one  moment  irreparable  mischief  is  wrought,  and  the 
"  lords  of  creation  "  are  powerless  against  this  insignifi- 
cant atom. 

Should  the  hunter  elect  to  follow  his  guide,  it  will 
almost  assuredly  lead  him  direct  to  a  bees'  nest.  That 
was  my  experience  in  three  out  of  four  instances  in  the 
Transvaal ;  in  the  fourth  case  it  led  us  to  a  snake,  half- 
hidden  in  a  hollow  tree.  The  natives,  however,  assert 
that  the  bird  will  at  times  deliberately  deceive,  and  I 
have  read  that,  when  refused  its  due  share  of  the  spoils, 
it  will,  on  the  next  occasion,  lead  up  to  a  sleeping  lion 
or  rhino,  by  way  of  revenge  !  Such  reasoning  seems  too 
complex  even  for  the  acute  wits  of  Indicator  and  {I. 
quote  from  a  letter  in  the  Field,  September  14,  1907)  "  in 
East  Africa,  the  Wandorobo  deny  that  the  bird  ever  does 
this,  but  assert  that  it  sometimes  takes  you  to  a  dead 
elephant  that  you  may  get  the  tusks,  or  to  a  dead  rhino- 
ceros, especially  when  the  animals  have  been  killed  some 
time  and  the  tusks  or  horns  have  not  been  removed ;  also 
that  it  will  take  you  to  a  lion's  kill,  but  not  to  a  lion. 
These  savages  say  that  God  has  given  this  bird  the  work 
of  finding  for  men  things  that  are  lost.  The  honey- 
guides  certainly  show  discernment  in  never  leading  one 


BIG   GAME  AND    ITS   BIED-PEOTECTORS     269 

to  the  hollow  logs  placed  in  trees  by  natives  purposely 
to  attract  bees,  such  hives  belonging  exclusively  to  those 
who  placed  them  and  never  being  looted  by  others, 
etiquette  on  this  point  being  strict."  Property  and  its 
rights,  it  appears,  are  recognised  by  these  lowest  of 
savage  races. 

Twice  I  lost  chances  to  finish  wounded  beasts  through 
this  annoying  cause,  and  once  a  leopard  coming  straight 
in  to  a  "  kill,"  quite  unsuspicious,  was  warned  by  a 
honey-guide  in  the  tree  above.  It  being  close  upon 
dusk,  the  bird's  object,  in  that  case,  was  clearly  distinct 
from  honey-hunting. 

Tiie   honey- guides,  like    some   cuckoos  (with  which 
bird-group  their  zygodactylic  feet  evidence  some  affinity), 
are  also  parasitic — that  is,  they  lay  their  eggs  in  the  nests 
of  other  birds,  just  as  at  home  the  British  cuckoo  foists 
its  egg  upon  titlark  or  wagtail.     Bat  in  one  essential 
the  two  cases  are  not  parallel.     For  our  cuckoo,  being  a 
larger  bird  of  hawk-like  appearance,  encounters  no  diffi- 
culty in  thus  feloniously  depositing  its  egg  ;  while  by  the 
same  token,  the  young  cuckoo,  when  hatched,  is  enabled 
summarily  to   eject   its  smaller  companions   from    the 
nest.     But  in  this  case,  the  intended  foster-parents  most 
strongly   resent  the   intrusion ;    and  that  not  without 
reason,  since  the  first  object  of  the  honey-guide  is  to 
break  all  the  eggs  of  the  lawful  owner  before  depositing 
its  own.     The  two,  moreover,  being  nearly  of  a  size, 
fierce  fighting  frec[uently  ensues.     But  a  truly  extraor- 
dinary result  follows.     For  should  the  intrusive  honey- 
guide  so  far  succeed  as  to  introduce  its  own  egg  into  the 
disputed   abode,    and   yet    fail    to    destroy    the    eggs 
originally    deposited  therein.    Nature   steps   in   with   a 
physical  device  expressly  designed  to  uphold  the  wrong- 
doer.    For  the  young   honey-guide,  when    hatched,   is 
provided   with  two   strong   and   sharp    hooks — regular 
forceps — one  on  either  mandible,  wherewith  to  destroy 
and  eject  its  step-brothers  and  sisters. 

The  sketch  annexed  is  copied  in  rough  outline  from 
a   photograph    of   a  nestling  Indicator  (/.  variegatus) 


270 


ON   SAFARI 


in  the  excellent  Journal  of  the  South  African  Ornitho- 
logists Union,  Vol.  Ill,  plate  i  (June  1907),  where  the 
following  description  of  the  phenomenon  is  given 
by  Messrs.  A.  K.  Haagner,  F.Z.S,  and  R.  H.  Ivy — 

"The  extremity  of  the  beak  in  the  nestling  is 
furnished  with  a  pair  of  hooks  which  are  hard,  strong, 
and  very  sharp.  These  peculiar  appendages,  which 
remind  one  of  the  reptile -like  toothed  birds  of  Jurassic 
iind    Cretaceous  ages,  such  as  Archwopteryx  macrura 


HEAD  OF  NESTLING  Indicator  variegatus  (scALY-THTtOATED  honet-guide) 

SHOWING   THE    "  FORCEPS  "    ON   MANDIBLES. 


from  the  Middle  Oolites,  are  very  curious  so  far  as  bird- 
anatomy  is  concerned,  and  one  is  led  to  wonder  at  the 
reason  of  their  presence.  We  can  only  conjecture  that 
they  are  of  use  to  the  nestling  when  ejecting  the  young 
of  the  rightful  owner  of  the  nest ;  as  it  would,  by  means 
of  these  hooks,  secure  a  perfectly  firm  hold  of  the  bird  it 
wanted  to  throw  out." 

The  article  proceeds  to  explain  that  the  pirated  nests 
were  invariably  placed  in  holes  of  trees  (such  as  those 
of  barbets,  woodpeckers,  etc.),  where  the  usual  method 
•employed  by  the  young  British  cuckoo  of  working  itself 
under  its  victim,  and  so  ejecting  it,  would  not  avail : 
whereas  these  tooth-like  appendages  would  serve  the 


BIG   GAME  AND   ITS   BIRD-PROTECTOES     271 

purpose  perfectly.  Lastly,  it  should  be  added  that  these 
vicious  hooks  are  cast  so  soon  as  the  young  honey-guide 
attains  maturity. 

On  the  whole,  it  will  be  apparent  from  this  short 
life-story  of  the  honey-guide  that  that  insignificant- 
looking  little  creature  possesses,  in  fact,  one  of  the  most 
forceful  and  vigorous  personalities  in  the  feathered 
world.     All  this,  however,  is  rather  a  digression. 


"go-'wat  birds"  {Turacus  corythaix). 
Great  loose  flutiy  thiDgs  with  huge  mop-heads  and  no  beaks<! 

Next  in  order,  having  regard  to  the  mischief  wrought, 
come  the  touracos  or  plantain-eaters  {Mvsophagidfe), 
commonly  called  "  louries "  in  the  Transvaal — and 
some  species  of  which  are  also  abundant  on  the  Laikipia 
and  high  plateaux  of  East  Africa.  These  are  large  birds 
of  very  extraordinary  appearance,  with  huge  head- tufts 
that  almost  conceal  the  short  pigeon-like  beak,  loose 
fluffy  plumage,  and  long  flirting  tails.  They  abound  on 
the  bush- veld  of  the  Transvaal,  two  species  in  particular 
— the  grey  loury  {Turacus  concolor),  whose  note  is  a 


272 


ON   SAFARI 


liarsh  "  Kva,  kva,"  and  a  resonant  mnsical  call,  clear  as 
the  human  voice,  "  Go  'way,  go  'way  "  ;  and  the  hand- 
some purple- crested  loury  [Gallirex)  with  crimsoned 
wing ;  besides  the  curious  mop-headed  green  loury, 
Turacus  corythaix.  It  is  the  first-named  that  is  by 
far  the  most  troublesome.  I  acquit  these  birds  of  any 
directly  malicious  intent  when  perpetrating  their  mis- 
chiefs. Their  food  consisting  of  plantains,  berries  and 
arboreal  fruits,  they  have  no  conceivable  interest  either 
in  the  big  game  or  its  hunters :  yet  should  one  of  these 
birds  perceive  a  human  being,  it  raises  an  outcry  that 


TURACUS   CONCOLOR. 


speedily  brings  up  any  other  louries  within  hearing,  all 
vying  with  each  other  in  strident  clamour.  Any  game 
within  a  mile  at  once  decamps. 

Another  bird-group  equally  abundant  and  character- 
istic of  the  South-African  bush-veld  is  that  of  the 
shrikes  (Laniidce).  Far  away  in  the  wilderness,  one 
hears  a  not  unmusical  chorus ;  gentle  at  first,  the  notes 
grow  louder  and  wilder  till  they  climax  in  raucous  key, 
and  the  performers  hurriedly  depart,  to  alight  in  a  mass 
on  some  bare  tree.  Then  one  sees  that  they  are  magpie- 
like birds,  black  and  white,  with  very  long  tails.  These 
are  sociable  shrikes,^  and  must  be  counted  among  the 

^  From  a  specimen  brought  home,  I  find  that  the  correct  name  is 
*'  long-tailed  pied  shrike  "  {Urolestes  melanoleucus). 


BIG   GAME   AND   ITS   BIRD-PEOTECTORS     273 

worst  of  detrimentals.  Altliougli,  as  just  indicated, 
these  shrikes  hold  frequent  impromptu  concerts  entirely 
on  their  own  account  (and  which  cannot  alarm  game) 
yet  it  is  more  than  certain  that  they  will  also  insist  on 
"addressing  the  meeting"  precisely  at  those  critical 
moments  of  a  stalk  when  their  ill-timed  chatter  spells 
sure  disaster  to  the  hunter. 


SOCIABLE  SHRIKE  [Urolcstes  melcinoUucus). 

The  shrikes,  being  insect-feeders,  habitually  attend 
the  herds  of  big  game,  in  order  to  pick  up  the  locusts, 
grasshoppers,  etc.,  that  are  disturbed  by  the  slowly-graz- 
ino'  animals.  Obviously  many  more  grasshoppers  would 
be  set  in  motion  by  a  stampeded  herd  in  fidl  flight 
than  by  separate  beasts  sedately  feeding.  Thus  the 
shrikes  have  a  direct  personal  interest  (if  they  knew  it) 
in  alarming  each  herd  of  game.  That  they  have  so 
deeply  worked  out  the  problem  as  to  associate  the 
appearance  of  a  hunter  with  alarm  to  the  game  and  its 
resultant  feast  on  grasshoppers,  it  would  not  be  wise  to 

T 


274 


ON   SAFARI 


assert.  But  whether  these  shrikes  are  actuated  by  reason 
or  instinct,  or  whatever  their  precise  motive  may  be,  at 
least  to  the  stallver  the  result  is  the  same — a  chatterino; 
crew  of  shrikes  and  the  clatter  of  g^alloping  hoofs. 

The  tick-birds  or  oxpeckers  {BuphagincB)  must  also 
be  included  in  the  category  of  detrimentals.  My  own 
short  experience  would  not  have  enal^led  me  so  to  classify 
them,  since  I  cannot  remember  to  have  lost  a  sinijle  shot 
through  their  agency.  On  one  occasion  I  passed  c[uite 
close  to  a  rhino,  and  in  full   view,  when,  though    the 


SABLE   ANTELOPE   ALARMED   BY   BIRD-WARNING. 


great  pachyderm  was  attended  by  at  least  a  score  of 
feathered  parasites  creeping  all  over  his  frame,  neither 
bird  nor  beast  took  the  slightest  notice.  I  might,  indeed, 
almost  have  been  inclined  to  regard  Buphaga  africana 
in  a  friendly  light,  since  the  flights  of  these  birds 
passing  overhead  at  dawn  have,  on  occasion,  indicated 
the  presence  and  direction  of  game.  But  the  testimony 
of  far  more  experienced  observers  has  proved  conclusively 
that  the  little  tick-bird  possesses  a  full  sense  of  gratitude 
towards  its  hosts,  and  habitually  gives  alarm  to  the 
animals  (especially  rhino  and  buflalo)  which  may,  at  the 
moment,  be  providing  it  with  a  meal. 

The  avocation  of  these  birds,  as  indicated  by  their 
name,  is  to  subsist  on  those  loathsome  parasitic  insects, 


BIG   GAME   AND   ITS   BIRD-PEOTECTORS     275 

such  as  warbles,  bots,  ticks  and  other  vermin,  that  in 
Africa  infest  all  larsre  animals,  whether  tame  or  wild. 
Thereby,  incidentally,  the  birds  tend  to  rid  the  suffering 
l.)easts  of  a  distressing  and  ceaseless  scourge.  For  many 
of  these  vermin,  laying  their  eggs  within  the  hide,  are 
hatched  in  a  living  cradle  of  flesh  and  l^lood,  where  their 
presence  creates  intense,  often  maddening,  irritation. 
The  birds  themselves  are  about  the  same  size  as  our 
starlings,  of  no  special  personality,  and  are  furnished 
with  a  strong  wedge-like  beak,  well  adapted  for  digging 
out  their  burrowing  prey.  In  colour  that  organ  varies 
from  bright  yellow  to  pale  red. 

That  Buphaga  erythroryncha  is  actuated  by  honest 
solicitude  for  the  safety  of  the  wild  game,  appears  to  be 
demonstrated  by  the  fact  that  when  feeding  on  the 
backs  of  cattle,  or  domestic  animals,  its  conduct  is  quite 
different.  In  such  cases,  no  notice  whatever  is  taken  of 
the  appearance  of  a  human  being,  and  no  warning  is 
given.  The  bird  appears  to  have  reasoned-out  the  fact 
that  cattle  stand  in  no  danger  from  the  hunter. 

There  are  several  other  species  of  birds  which 
occasionally  (whether  by  design  or  otherwise)  communi- 
cate alarm  to  one's  quarry.  Among  these  may  be 
mentioned  the  glossy  starlings,  rollers  or  blue  jays, 
colies  and  rasvoo-el.  Eg-rets  also  and  buff-backed 
herons  attend  upon  game,  perching  on  their  backs  to 
feed  upon  Hies  and  ticks,  and  should  be  named,  though, 
being  so  conspicuous  and  easily  avoided,  they  never  give 
trouble  to  the  hunter. 

In  East  Africa,  one  of  the  most  troublesome  birds 
to  the  big-game  hunter  is  the  black-winged  plover 
{Stephanihyx  inelanoptei'us) ,  a  shrieking  peewit-like  bird 
with  a  brazen  voice  and  the  lung-power  of  a  suffragette. 
Many  birds,  as  is  well  known,  habitually  ''give 
tongue  "  on  seeing  a  strange  creature  or  something  they 
suspect.  At  home,  all  are  familiar  with  the  uproar  that 
small  birds  raise  on  discovering  a  prowling  cat  or  stoat 
or  snake,  or  a  somnolent  owl  in  an  ivied  tree.  This  is,  I 
imagine,  the  motive — the  common  impulse  to  mob  any 


276 


ON   SAFARI 


strange  or  suspect  object — tliat  actuates  most  of  the 
birds  above  mentioned  to  make  nuisances  of  themselves. 
The  honey-guide,  as  explained,  has  a  clear  and  definite 
aim  in  so  doing  ;  while  the  shrikes  may  also,  as  sug- 
gested, have  an  intelligent  motive.  But  with  the  rest 
it  is  merely  the  "  mobbing  "  instinct.  That  impulse  is 
all  the  greater  when — probably  for  the  first  time  in 
their  lives — such  birds  as  touracos,  plovers,  rollers  and 
the  rest  observe  large  creatures  like  human  beings 
prone  on  earth  and  advancing  with  secret  serpentine 
movement — naturally  they  sound  the  alarm. 

Bird-nuisances  may  thus  be  divided  into  three 
classes,  to  wit :  (1)  Those  whose  interference  is  purely 
accidental,  such  as  the  francolins,  guinea-fowls,  etc. ;  (2) 
those  which  offend  from  sheer  "  cussedness,"  such  as 
plovers,  louries,  rollers  and  that  ilk ;  while  (3)  the 
honey-guides,  and  possibly  also  the  shrikes,  can  boast 
a  clear  and  intelligent  reason  for  their  (nevertheless) 
untimely  solicitations. 


TUKACUS  CORYTHAIX. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

FASCICULA 

I.  Retrospective 

It  may  amuse  after  a  completed  ventm^e  to  return 
to  the  distant  standpoint  whence  a  promised  land  was 
first  surveyed,  and  to  "  reconstitute  "  the  original  ideas 
and  frame  of  mind.  This  is  the  way  my  brother 
regarded  an  East-African  expedition  when  first  proposed 
to  him  in  April  1904 — 

"I  have  just  re-read  'Jackson'  [Badminton — 'Big 
Game '],  and  admit  to  be  a  bit  disconcerted,  though  of 
course  the  railway  has  modified  things  since  that  time. 
Still  he  doesn't  speak  of  the  Kilimanjaro  country  being 
altogether  healthy,  and  warns  against  '  flies,'  which, 
as  you  know,  are  death  to  me.  No  doubt  there  was 
any  amount  of  game — though,  mind,  I  draw  a  very 
distinct  line  of  demarcation  between  big  game  and 
dangerous  game.  Elephant,  rhino,  lion,  bufli"alo  and  all 
such  Noah's  Ark  beasts  are  outside  my  schedule.  The 
more  subtle  and  venomous  beasts  of  the  field,  I  must 
just  trust  to  Providence  to  escape  the  vengeance  of. 
The  giraff'e  I  regard  it  as  a  shame  to  kill  at  all,  and  that 
only  leaves  me  the  antelopes.  To  get  the  bigger  kinds, 
we  shall  have  to  trekk  a  long  way  in  from  the  railway, 
and  I  do  not  think  either  of  us  can  now  do  very  hard 
work  in  such  tropical  heat ;  and  if  you  go  up  too  high, 
there  is  nothing  but  elephant  and  they  in  impenetrable 
forest !  Jackson  speaks  of  the  labour  [after  elephants] 
being  utterly  exhausting.  Now,  I  love  big  game,  and 
can  sit  on  a  log  and   watch  for  it  all  day,  but  .  .  . 

277 


278  ON   SAFARI 

However,  I  must  get  tlie  rifle  loosed  off  this  year.  It 
doesn't  do  to  keep  a  weapon  tliat  (they  say)  will  drive 
through  twenty-four  inches  of  solid  oak,  eating  its 
head  off." 

In  a  later  note: — "Yes,  I  undertake  to  see  after 
getting  the  necessary  medical  stores,  etc.,  but  hardly 
understand  what  '  special  remedies '  you  refer  to — if  by 
'  horn-pricks '  you  mean  a  hoist  by  a  rhino,  the  only 
useful  article  I  can  suggest  is  an  oak  suit  with  brass 
mounts." 

Well,  since  then  we  have  twice  experienced  in  actual 
practice  the  true  degree  of  all  these  foreboded  risks  and 
ills.  The  tropical  heats,  the  mountain-forest,  the  mala- 
rial breeze,  the  savage  beasts  and  the  subtle — we 
encountered  them  all,  and  under  a  gracious  Providence, 
have  not  recjuired  the  brass-bound  suit. 

We  encountered,  nevertheless,  during  two  com- 
paratively short  expeditions  (and  outside  all  such  risks 
as  fever  and  the  like),  several  instances  of  tangible  danger 
from  wild  beasts,  as  hereinbefore  recorded. 


II.   Danger 

What  degree  of  danger  is  there  encountered  in 
African  hunting?  Many  who  have  not  had  practical 
experience,  and  whose  knowledge  is  confined  to  reading, 
are  apt  to  exaggerate  it.  On  the  other  hand,  those 
who  know,  perhaps  minimise  the  contingent  risks  partly 
through  a  fear  that  they  may  be  suspected  of  extolling 
their  own  exploits  or  personal  courage.  Then  there  is 
that  third  section — those  who  do  not  survive  to  tell  the 
tale.  And  one  cannot  spend  much  time  in  Africa  with- 
out being  surprised  at  the  number  of  "  accidents " — 
many  of  them  fatal  accidents — that  are  always  occurring, 
and  of  w^hich  no  word  reaches  home.  The  casual 
wanderer,  the  adventurous  spirits  of  the  hinterland, 
these  meet  sudden  deaths — or  die  of  wounds  or  gangrene 
— and  no  record  remains. 

My  own  impression  tends  to  the  belief  that  there  is, 


)  J      )  J      >      >  5 

■>  J      >'       >      J        ,       , 


1       ■» 


o 


c     c 
c       c 


FASCICULA  279 

in  almost  every  ease,  an  appreciable  degree  of  danger 
in  taking  on  either  elephant,  rhino,  buffalo  or  lion. 
Occasionally,  of  course,  a  "soft  job"  may  be  enjoyed; 
but  such,  with  these  four,  cannot  be  relied  upon.  So 
absolutely  dominant,  moreover,  at  the  crucial  moment, 
is  the  hunter — or  hunting  instinct;  so  concentrated 
must  thought  and  action  be  on  success  alone,  that  every 
other  idea  is  eliminated.  There  is  no  time  to  consider 
those.  Therefore  when  all  is  over,  and  the  beast  lies 
dead  before  you,  one's  mind,  occupied  with  success 
achieved,  is  apt  to  ignore  those  preceding  moments  of 
crucial,  vital  import  that  are  past,  and  which,  even  at  the 
time,  received  no  thought.  For  all  that,  those  moments 
may  have  been  critical,  dangerous  to  the  last  degree. 
The  rifle  has  triumphed,  but  the  event  might  well  have 
resulted  otherwise — one  turn  of  ill-luck,  a  second's  delay 
or  loss  of  nerve,  an  ill-judged  movement  or  false 
manoeuvre,   and  the  case  might  have  been  reversed. 

Some  of  those  who  have  fully  realised  this  latter 
alternative  may  not  live  to  record  it.  But  it  is  scarcely 
wise  entirely  to  ignore  it ;  nor  to  give  too  wide  a  scope 
to  the  admirable  British  trait  of  depreciating  danger  by 
denying  its  existence.  The  point  of  these  remarks  is  to 
insist  that  none  should  undertake  the  pursuit  of  the  four 
animals  named,  without  first  realising  that  it  may,  in  all 
probability,  involve  a  certain  degree  of  risk. 

That  degree  appears  greatest  in  the  ease  of  elephants, 
since  these  are  quite  apt  to  assume  the  offensive  without 
notice,  and  before  being  molested  at  all.  So,  it  is  true, 
may  rhino ;  but  in  their  case,  the  lack  of  intelligence 
(and  equally  of  vice)  coupled  with  very  defective  eye- 
sight, reduces  the  danger.  With  buffalo  and  lion  the 
chief  risk  only  begins  after  the  animal  is  wounded, 
though  it  may  then  become  acute  enough. 

The  lion  again  is  possessed  of  high  progressive  in- 
telligence, quite  capable  of  adapting  itself  to  changing 
circumstance.  Thus  the  new  system  of  "  riding  lions  " 
to  a  stand,  which  is  briefly  referred  to  above  (p.  216), 
appears  to  be  developing  in  the  lions  of  those  regions 


280  ON   SAFAEI 

where  it  is  practised — such  as  Athi  Plains — a  clear 
tendency  to  attack  when  unmolested,  and  especially  to 
attack  horsemen,  whom  they  are  learning  to  regard  as 
systematic  enemies. 

This  the  following  account  of  a  recent  fatality  on  the 
Athi  Plains  tends  to  show.  I  transcribe  from  a  letter 
from  a  friend  in  East  Africa — 

"  I  regret  to  tell  you  that  j\Ir.  Lucas  of  Donyo-Sabuk 
was  killed  by  a  lioness  last  week  (May  1906).  It 
happened  thus.  Lions  had  for  some  time  been  molest- 
ing his  stock,  so  he  wrote  for  Capt,  Goldfinch,  whom 
you  know,  to  come  over  and  help  him.  They  were 
riding  together  on  the  Athi,  when  suddenly  a  lioness 
sprang  upon  Goldfinch,  rolling  horse  and  rider  to  the 
ground.  L.  at  once  fired  from  his  saddle,  when  the 
brute  immediately  left  Goldfinch  and  sprang  on  Lucas, 
hurling  him  and  his  pony  over,  clawing  him  in  the  face, 
and  mauling  his  arm  so  badly  that  he  died  a  few  days 
later  in  hospital.  I  should  add  that  Goldfinch,  mauled 
as  he  was,  stood  by  his  friend  and  fired  point-blank  into 
the  lioness'  ear,  giving  her  the  coiqD  de  grace.  One 
seldom  hears  of  these  brutes  attacking  unproV'Oked  as 
this  one  did.  A  young  fellow  has  also  just  been  killed 
at  Nyeri  by  a  rhino.  He  was  unarmed,  and  could  not 
get  out  of  the  brute's  way." 

Not  only  are  the  four  animals  named  capable  by 
sheer  strength  of  almost  instantly  destroying  human 
life,  but  they  also  possess  a  sjDeed  and  an  activity 
beyond  what  might  be  expected  in  such  ponderous 
beasts.  Hence,  should  the  critical  moment  arrive  at  all, 
it  comes  in  the  form  of  a  headlong  onset,  that,  if  carried 
home,  may  disconcert  the  coolest  nerve. 

HL  Snakes 

Of  the  "more  subtle  and  venomous  beasts  of  the 
field"  above  referred  to.  East  Africa  is  singularly  free. 
During  the  whole  period  of  our  wanderings,  including 
both   summer  and    winter  seasons,  we   did   not   see   a 


FASCICUIA  281 

dozen  snakes  in  all,  and  the  hooded  cobra  that  attacked 
my  brother  on  the  Athi  (p.  228)  and  was  shot  for  its 
temerity,  afforded  the  only  instance  of  momentary 
excitement.  This  snake  (Naja  haje)  not  only  strikes 
with  its  fangs,  but  is  capable  of  ejecting  its  venom  from 
the  month. 

In  that  district,  during  our  lion-drives,  we  saw  three 
or  four  fairly  big  black  snakes  resembling  the  European 
Colubers,  and  probably  6  or  7  ft.  in  length,  pre- 
sumably black  mambas.  This  was  in  January,  and  at 
the  same  season  we  came  across  one  puif- adder  above 
Nakuru.  A  whippy,  adder-like  snake,  also  near  Nakuru, 
but  in  August,  completes  our  list.  It  must  be  added 
that  although  we  did  not  happen  to  see  them,  pythons 
are  not  uncommon,  especially  at  Solai  and  Baringo.  At 
the  latter  place  Mr.  Archer  has  shot  several — one  of 
181^  ft.,  which  had  just  killed  a  waterbuck  calf,  as  shown 
in  photo  at  p.  290. 

In  South  Africa  a  very  different  state  of  affairs  pre- 
vails. There,  snakes  of  many  kinds  abound,  including 
several  dangerous  species.  The  green  mamba,^  for  ex- 
ample, was  specially  numerous  on  the  bush-veld  of  the 
North-Eastern  Transvaal,  where  three  or  four  sometimes 
showed  up  together,  their  vicious  heads  all  raised  verti- 
cally a  foot  or  two  clear  of  the  grass,  while  they  coolly 
surveyed  the  disturber  before  gliding  away  in  the  same 
half-erect  attitude.  These  mambas  appeared  to  be  about 
10  or  12  ft.  long,  of  which  one-third  is  carried  erect, 

1  An  example  of  the  way  in  which  the  more  advanced  scientists 
(quite  unconsciously,  no  doubt)  work  "  up  in  the  clouds,"  high  above 
the  heads  of  humbler  students  like  myself,  and  of  how  little  assist- 
ance their  labours  thus  render  to  field-naturalists,  is  afforded  by  this 
same  "  green  mamba."  By  that  name  the  snake  is  universally 
known  throughout  South  Africa  by  black  and  white,  Briton  and 
Boer  alike  :  yet  the  name  cannot  be  found  (or,  at  least,  I  failed  to  find 
it)  in  the  whole  library  of  the  Zoological  Society.  So  effectually  is 
the  identity  of  a  well-known  reptile  concealed  under  scientific  pro- 
cedure, that  I  am  unable  here  to  give  its  proper  title. 

To  christen  every  ci-eature  in  our  own  tongue  may  require  the 
ingenuity  of  a  new  Noah  ;  but  when  a  well-known  name  actually 
exists,  surely  it  is  criminal  to  suppress  or  ignore  it  ? 


282 


ON   SAFARI 


tlie  remainder  gliding  along  the  ground.  In  thickness 
they  might  be  18  ins.  in  circumference.  Being  assured 
that  their  bite  involves  certain  death  after  half-an-hour's 
terrible  agony  (though  whether  this  is  true  or  not,  I 
cannot  say),  one  could  not  but  regard  those  gliding 
apparitions  with  a  cold  shudder  and  a  freezing  sensation 
around  the  heart. 

Puff-adders  up  to  4  ft.  long,  very  thick,  with  flat 


'-^^^^A^^fc^^ 


GREEN  MAMBAS. 


toad-like  heads,  are  numerous  in  the  Transvaal,  though 
at  the  period  of  my  visit  (June  to  September)  some- 
what lethargic.  From  a  female,  killed  July  2,  36  ins. 
long,  I  took  twenty  eggs,  about  the  size  of  thrush's. 
There  were  also  Ring -hols  =  ring- necked  snakes 
(Sej^edon  hcemachatis)  and  other  species,  not  to  omit 
the  python.  One  of  these  latter  which  we  killed 
measured  11  ft.  9  ins.,  but  that  is  far  below  their  full 
size,  for  pythons  of  22  ft.  have  been  recorded. 

On  one  occasion  a  Shangani  "  boy  "  with  me  pointed 
excitedly  into  a  hole  leading  into  one  of  those  laby- 
rinthine systems  of  burrows,  made  by  creatures  of  the 


FASCICULA  283 

"  unseen  world,"  and  therein  I  saw  about  twelve  inches 
of  visible  python,  a  foot  underground.  The  extremities 
extended  for  yards  in  both  directions.  I  borrowed  the 
"  boy's  "  assegai,  jabbed  it  hard  through  the  beast's  body 
and  deep  into  the  soil  beneath — then  turned  and  fled. 
For  one  moment,  a  python's  head  appeared  at  another 
outlet,  then  the  assegai  began  to  writhe  and  squirm 
before  finally  disappearing  for  ever ! 

Here,  in  the  Transvaal,  were  also  big  monitors,  or 
iguanas,  arboreal  and  terrestrial,  some  running  to  4  and 
5  ft.  in  length — quite  harmless,  it  is  true ;  yet  no  one 
can  regard  them  as  congenial  companions.  We  saw  no 
sign  of  these  in  East  Africa. 

The  latter,  moreover,  enjoys  a  happy  immunity  even 
from  the  major  noxious  insects — the  minor,  admittedly, 
are  bad  enouo;h.  I  cannot  call  to  mind  meetino;  with  a 
dozen  scorpions  in  East  Africa,^  whereas  in  the  South, 
each  camping-ground  had  to  be  laboriously  cleared  of 
stones  and  other  shelter — and  even  then  scorpions  found 
refuge  under  one's  bath  !  Only  once,  however,  was  I 
stung,  and  that  through  the  misplaced  habit  (born  of 
civilisation)  of  washing  every  morning.  In  order  to 
find  my  sponge-bag  in  the  dark,  I  used  to  hang  it  on 
a  convenient  tree,  and  this  particular  morning  the 
venomous  beast  was  inside  it !  The  pain  is  severe  for 
twelve  hours,  and  continues  in  modified  degree  for 
double  that  period. 

lY.  The  Safari 

The  equipment  of  a  safari — that  is,  the  outfitting  of 
an  expedition  for,  say,  three  or  four  months  up-country — 
demands  much  consideration,  forethought  and  organisa- 
tion. Both  of  the  first  two  essentials  it  is  right  to  say 
are  fairly  fulfilled  by  the  efficient  arrangements  of  the 
Mombasa  and  Nairobi  shootino;-ao:ents.  The  third 
largely  depends   on  the  "  Neapara "  or  headman. 

1  Scorpions  are,  nevertheles?,  numerous  enough  in  sandy  regions, 
such  as  those  of  Kjtinps  and  northward  therefrom. 


284  ON   SAFARI 

Presuming  tliat  it  is  intended  to  penetrate  some 
distance  back  from  the  railway,  a  force  of  at  least  thirty 
to  forty  porters,  or  upwards,  will  be  required — for  in 
East  Africa  beasts  of  burden  are  not  available,  owing  to 
the  terror  of  the  tsetse -fly. 

Add  to  these  a  couple  of  Somali  hunters  with  two 
gun-bearers  apiece,  tent-boys,  cook  and  cook's  mates, 
wdtli  the  requisite  number  of  askaris — as  by  law 
recjuired — and  you  have  a  fair-sized  mob  of  savages. 

Now  when  one's  whole  thoughts  and  attention  are 
absorbed  by  the  primary  objects  of  the  expedition,  it  is 
in  the  last  degree  inconvenient  to  the  leaders  to  be  con- 
stantly called  upon  to  settle  details  of  organisation, 
discipline  and  the  like.  Yet  these  matters  must  be 
settled ;  and  upon  their  efficient  execution  day  by  day 
depends  nothing  less  than  the  comfort  and  success  of 
the  entire  venture. 

Nor  are  these  duties  any  slight  or  insignificant 
business.  They  involve,  for  example,  the  provision, 
superintendence  and  daily  issue  of  rations,  together  with 
their  due  subdivision  among  the  various  "  messes  "  ;  the 
apportionment  of  loads  and  other  duties,  both  in  camp 
and  on  the  march,  to  each  individual ;  the  setting  and 
relief  of  watches  and  work-parties  for  wood  and  water, 
too;ether  with  the  constant  maintenance  of  order  and 
content,  and  a  hundred  minor  matters. 

All  this  falls — or  should  fall — upon  the  Neapara 
or  headman  aforesaid.  An  efficient  headman,  strong, 
insighted  and  forceful,  means  a  contented  safari  and  a 
smooth-running  exjDedition.  On  the  other  hand,  a  feeble 
eye-serving  neapara  wrecks  the  w^liole  show. 

All  this,  it  may  be  urged,  is  self-evident.  Admittedly 
so  ;  when  put  thus  in  plain  words,  after  the  event.  But 
in  practice  foresight  sometimes  fails,  and  one  may  only 
come  to  realise  such  facts  when  face  to  face  with  an  ill- 
managed  mob  of  half-mutinous  savages  far  away  in 
African  wilds.  That  event  may  easily  occur  should 
your  headman  belong  to  the  second  of  the  two  cate- 
gories above  defined.     I  speak  from  experience  of  both. 


>  J 

i  5  5.       1  ^      3            > 

)  3  3    \3  '         5  5 

>  1  1          >  1            1 


>•.>■*       J   > 


:>  >  '    J    \  J   J     )  ,J 


>.'    i    '    ?     ' 


'J"j'»-5a3>j         '.'a'ji'ioj'j 


•GOLDFINCH       AND    HIS    NEAV   OWNEK. 


OUR   HEADMAN    (ON   EXTKEME    IUGHT),    ELMI   TO   AUTHoK's   LEFT,    ENOCH    BEHIND 
HIM,    DEAD   LIONESS   IN   FRONT   ESCAPED    CAMERA. 


FASCICULA  285 

Our  first  lieadmau  was  a  born  leader — and  he  looked 
it.  When  first  introduced  at  Mombasa  to  that  huge 
swarthy  personality,  vast  of  fiame  and  truculent  of 
visage,  a  tremor  of  fear — let  me  admit  it — would  scarce 
be  suppressed.^  I  trust  it  was  concealed.  The  idea  of 
spending  months  in  the  wilds,  in  company  with  that 
savage  Soudanee,  did  disconcert  for  a  moment ;  but  no 
long  time  elapsed  before  we  came  to  appreciate  the 
treasure  we  possessed.  Before  that  iron  will  (and 
obvious  power  to  enforce  it)  difiiculties  and  troubles 
melted  like  butter  on  hot  toast — few,  indeed,  ever  dared 
to  confront  it.  Discipline,  in  savage  Africa,  relies  first 
on  the  moral  power ;  but  when  that  fails,  in  the  next 
resource  force  becomes  the  only  law. 

Long  afterwards  when  far  away  "  out-by,"  at  a 
remote  up-country  station,  our  friend  the  official 
represeutative  of  King  and  Empire  asked  us  how  this 
headman  behaved ;  and  on  being  told  that  we  were 
thoroughly  satisfied — that,  in  short,  the  whole  routine- 
work  ran  like  a  machine — replied  that  he  was  not 
surprised ;  that,  in  fact,  he  quite  expected  it  would  be 
so.  Naturally  we  inquired  if  our  friend  had  ever  met 
this  savage  chieftain  before.  "Oh  yes ;  he  served  his 
term  of  years  here  on  the  chain-gang  !  "  "  The  chain- 
ofano- !     What  for  ? "     "  Oh,  I  think  it  was  murder." 

Now  to  any  one  holding  the  ordinary  British  and 
altogether  admirable  respect  for  the  Ten  Command- 
ments, a  reply  like  this,  uttered  more  or  less  casually, 
gives  pause.  But  on  reflection  one  realises  that  moral 
standards  in  Central  Africa  possess  a  wider  basis  than 
obtains  at  home.  Other  countries,  other  manners ; 
savage  countries  .  .  .  well,  not  savage  manners,  but 
manners  adjusted  to  environment.  The  conclusion  I 
reached — and  still  hold — is  that  in  Equatorial  Africa, 
at  the  present  epoch,  you  can't  have  a  better  headman 
than  a  respectable  murderer — a  murderer  on  your  own 

1  His  portrait  appears  at  p.  284,  on  the  extreme  right.  Behind 
the  author  stands  Enoch,  his  tent-boy ;  to  his  left  sits  Elmi  Hassan. 
The  lioness  in  the  foreground  unfortunately  escaped  the  camera. 


286  ON   SAFARI 

side.  Remember  tliat  your  pet  murderer  has  already 
expiated  his  offence  and  is  once  more,  by  law,  a  free 
and  responsible  member  of  the  African  community. 
Acting  on  this  conclusion,  I  wrote,  months  before  start- 
ing on  my  next  expedition  to  East  Africa,  urgently 
requesting  our  agents  at  Mombasa  to  secure  for  us 
once  more  the  services  of  this  same  headman;  or  at 
least,  in  default  of  him  personally,  another  precisely 
such  as  he.  There  might,  perhaps,  be  just  a  spice  of 
devilry  in  this,  for  our  good  friends  at  Mombasa  feebly 
rexDlied  that  they  would  do  their  best,  but  that  they  had 
never  before  heard  of  "  assassins  at  a  premium  ! " 

Alas  for  us,  their  efforts  failed;  and  our  second 
headman  was  a  poor  forceless  specimen,  with  no  soul 
to  lead  or  the  power  to  control.  The  result  involved 
endless  trouble,  day  by  day,  in  the  direction  and 
management  of  our  safari,  such  discipline  as  obtained 
being  that  enforced  by  ourselves. 

The  end,  as  already  indicated  (p.  236),  w^as  open 
mutiny;  when  the  forces  of  moral  suasion  had  neces- 
sarily to  be  replaced  by  those  represented  by  the 
sjambok.     The  desired  effect  resulted. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

STRAY   NOTES   ON    EAST-AFRICAN   GAME 

I.  Ox  Certaix  Antelopes  not  met  with 

Bongo. — Ti -agelaphus  euryceros. 

The  fact  appears  incredible  that  any  large  wild  animal, 
carrying,  moreover,  a  splendid  trophy,  should  exist  close 
hv — as  this  does  at  Eldama  Ravine,  within  twenty  or 
thirty  miles  of  the  Uganda  railwa}^ — and  yet  defy  our 
best  sportsmen.  And  not  the'  bongo  alone,  for  in  these 
same  tropical  forests  of  the  ]\Iau  and  of  Laikipia  there 
also  lurks  unseen  and  unshot  the  oiant  forest-hos;,  that 
has  been  christened  (from  some  fragments  of  skin  and 
bone  obtained  from  natives)  Hylochcerus  meinertzha- 
geni?- 

The  apparent  paradox  tones  down  considerably  when 
one  comes  to  see  the  chosen  home  of  these  two  unknown 
animals.  It  is  what  is  commonly  described  as  "  impene- 
trable forest ;  "  and  thereby,  if  language  means  anything 
at  all,  the  nwstery  is  explained  at  once.  But  is  any 
forest  impenetrable  ?  I  should  have  doubted  the 
possibility  had  I  not  myself  seen  these  forest-jungles  of 
the  ]Mau.  Penetrable  in  limited  degree,  slowly  and 
laboriously,  they  may  be  ;  anything  beyond  that  must 
be  only  for  the  fuUest  vigour  of  youth,  when  keenness 
and  physical  power  admit  no  bounds.  That  age,  in  my 
case,  having  already  been  doubled,  the  uncompromising 

^  My  friend  Mr.  Rowland  Ward  writes  me  that  one  or  two 
examples  have  quite  recently  (June  1908)  been  secured  in  British 
East  Africa — one  by  Col.  Watkins  Yardley  in  the  Kenya  district, 
and  a  fine  boar  in  the  Mau  Forest. 

287 


288  ON   SAFARI 

epithet  must  be  admitted — to  me,  those  forests  are 
im^Dcnetrable. 

The  bongo  is  a  big  beast,  one  of  the  heaviest  of  the 
antelopes,  standing  4  ft.  at  the  shoulder  and  carrying 
massive  upright  horns  approaching  a  yard  in  length. 
These,  from  their  flattened,  abruptly  twisted  form  and 
curve,  clearly  demonstrate  the  owner's  affinity  with  the 
bushbucks ;  and  the  bongo,  in  systematic  classification, 
stands  between  that  genus  and  the  inyalas,  or  harnessed 
antelopes.  The  existence  of  this  animal  was  first  made 
known  to  science  by  Du  Chaillu,  who  brought  home  a 
skin  from  the  Gaboon  in  West  Africa  ;  and  a  mounted 
specimen,  a  splendid  bull,  obtained  by  Mr.  Isaacs, 
formerly  Commissioner  at  Eldama  Ravine,  may  be  seen 
in  the  galleries  of  South  Kensington.  This  animal  was 
followed  persistently  by  native  hunters  with  dogs  and 
spears  till  eventually,  so  densely  grew  the  jungle,  that 
not  even  a  bongo  could  further  go.  There  it  was  over- 
taken and  killed.  Other  specimens  have  been  obtained 
by  the  same  means ;  but  I  believe  that  Mr.  Isaacs  did 
not  himself  succeed  in  shooting  a  bongo.  A  female  has, 
however,  recently  been  shot  by  Capt.  Stigand,  of  the 
King's  African  Rifies,  in  the  Kikuyu  Forest  between 
Limoru  and  Escarpment — thus  extending  the  known 
range  of  the  bongo  to  the  eastward  of  the  great  Rift 
Valley — but  leaving  the  bull  bongo  as  yet  unshot. 

Curious,  yet  not  luminously  intelligent,  is  the  popular 
interest  displayed  in  such  subjects.  Some  little  time 
ago  the  discovery  of  the  okapi  in  the  Congo  forests 
aroused  almost  an  enthusiasm.  Hardly  a  man,  woman 
or  child  but  knew  all  about  the  okapi ;  yet  here  in 
British  territory  we  have  two  great  unknown  animals 
quite  as  interesting,  but  it  is  doubtful  if  one  reader  in 
a  hundred  will  ever  have  heard  of  them  ! 

SiTUTUNGA. — Tixtgelaphus  spekei. 

A  water-loving  antelope,  confined  to  dense  swamps 
and  beds  of  papyrus,  chiefly,  it  appears,  in  the  region  of 
Victoria  Nyanza  and  upon  one  of  the  Sesse  Islands  in 


STRAY   NOTES  289 

tliatlake.     (See  The  Great  and  Small  Game  of  Africa, 
by  Mr.  Rowland  AVarcl,  p.  477.) 

Geeenuk. — Lithocranius  ivalleri. 

Remarkable  in  ajD^Dearance — with  its  abnormally 
long,  girafte-like  neck — the  gerenuk  is  equally  remark- 
able in  distribution.  Its  head-quarters  are  in  Somaliland, 
thence  spreading  southw\irds  through  (British)  Jubaland 
to  the  Tana  River ;  but  there  it  stops.  Broadly  speak- 
ing, no  gerenuk  are  found  throughout  the  central  zone 
of  British  East  Africa  (that  is,  the  line  of  the  Uganda 
railway).  But  to  the  southward,  leaving  a  blank  belt 
of  100  miles  or  more  in  breadth,  these  antelopes  turn 
up  again  on  the  Seringeti  Plains,  south  of  Voi,  and 
thence  westw^ird,  skirting  the  base  of  Kilimanjaro,  and 
beyond  into  German  territory. 

Since  writing  the  above,  my  friend  and  Spanish 
shooting-partner,  the  Marcjuis  de  la  Scala,  who  with  Mr. 
R.  de  la  Huerta  and  the  Duke  of  Peuaranda,  has  just  re- 
turned from  a  most  successful  trip  in  British  East  iVfrica, 
writes  me  :  "  We  only  came  across  this  species  once,  up 
north  near  the  junction  of  the  Guaso  Nyro  and  Guaso 
Narok.  I  was  lucky  in  bagging  the  only  individual  we 
saw,  and  it  happened  to  be  a  male.  We  heard  of  several 
being  got  near  the  German  boundary ;  and  on  our 
journey  back  towards  the  coast,  we  saw  one  from  the 
railway  carriage  window  near  Sultan  Hamud." 

Hunter's  Antelope. — Damaliscus  hunteri. 

On  the  Tana  River  only  and  northwards  therefrom. 

Topi.  — Da  maliscus  jimela. 

This  species  we  had  included  in  our  programme  ;  but 
were  prevented  from  reaching  its  habitat  on  the  Man 
Highlands  owing  to  the  outbreak  of  the  Nandi  rebellion. 
The  topi  is  not  uncommon  there,  but  more  plentiful  on 
the  Tana  River  and  in  Jubaland.  This  antelope,  like 
its  South-African  relative,   the  tsesseby,  is  beautifully 

u 


290  ON   SAFAPJ 

marked  with  black  points,  shading  away  during  life  into 
glossy  purple  reflections  like  the  bloom  on  a  ripe  grape, 
A  tsesseby  bull  happened  to  be  the  first  big  beast  that 
fell  to  my  rifle  in  Africa,  and  that  lovely  coloration 
remains  fixed  in  my  memory. 

Roan  Antelope. — Hvppotragus  equinus. 

This  has  always  been  considered  a  rare  animal  in 
East  Africa  ;  yet  we  might,  with  luck,  have  met  with  it 
at  various  points  in  our  travels — say  on  the  Athi,  or  in 
the  country  between  Nakuru  and  Baringo — but  such 
good  fortune  did  not  befall.  Small  herds  are  known  in 
the  Lumbwa  Valley,  towards  Muhoroni  and  Kibigori ; 
while  southwards  therefrom,  the  roan  is  said  to  be  fairly 
numerous  on  the  Guaso  Nyero  and  thence  towards  the 
lake. 

My  specimens  are  from  South  Africa. 

The  Marquis  de  la  Scala  writes  me  :  "  We  shot  three 
roan  on  the  Thyka  River,  left  bank — the  first  at  the 
back  of  Donyo  Sabuk.  That  herd,  however,  is  very 
poor,  and  is  now  preserved.  Other  parties  got  roan, 
quite  good  heads  for  the  country  (28  ins.  and  27  ins.) 
near  Muhoroni." 


Sable  Antelope. — Hippotragus  niger. 

Found  only  in  the  coastal  region,  particularly  on 
the  Shimba  Hills,  a  few  stations  up  the  line  from  Mom- 
basa ;  and  in  no  great  numbers — two  or. three  small 
herds  and  poor  in  head,  36  ins.  being  the  best. 
Having  much  better  specimens  from  the  Transvaal,  we 
did  not  try  for  sable  in  East  Africa.  My  two  best 
sable  bulls,  shot  in  the  Lebombo  bush-veld,  measured 
44^  and  42  ins.  respectively  ;  and  I  had  a  female  of 
32|-  ins.  These  three,  together  with  many  other  fine 
trophies,  the  results  of  three  months'  hunting,  I  lost 
through  the  outbreak  of  war  in  the  Transvaal — October 
1899.     My  two  companions,  however,  suftered  infinitely 


STRAY   NOTES  291 

worse  ;  for  one  brother,  Reginald  S.  0.  Ingle,  joining 
the  Im^ierial  Light  Horse,  was  shot  dead  before  Vry- 
heid.  May  20,  1900  ;  while  J.  C.  Ingle  was  seized  and 
held  prisoner  in  Lydenburg  gaol  for  eight  weary  months. 
Escaping  thence  he  did  good  service  as  Intelligence 
Officer  with  Bethune's  Light  Horse.  But  by  way  of 
reprisal,   the   Boers   burnt    down   his  house  and  store. 


MY   FIRST   VIEW   OF    A    SABLE    BULL.       ".JUMPED    UP   "WITH    A    SXOP.T. " 

with    all     it     contained  —  including    my    forty  -  four 
trophies  ! 

Koodoo. — Strepsiceros  kudu. 

We  did  not  try  for  this,  though  Bariugo  is  a  well- 
known  locality.  Its  haunts  there  are  among  specially 
stony  mountains — piles  of  rugged  boulders,  hidden 
amidst  wiry  grass  and  ornamented  with  thorny  creepers, 
the  hardest  of  "  going."  The  most  deadly  enemy  of 
the  koodoo  in  that  rcQ-ion  is  the  liuntinsf-doo;,  which 
destroys  more  than  all  the  licensed  sportsmen  put 
together. 

My  own  heads  are  from  Mashonaland  and  the 
Transvaal. 


292  ON   SAFARI 

Lesser  Koodoo. — Strepsiceros  imherhis. 

The  Marquis  cle  la  Scala  sends  me  the  aunexecl  photo 
(together  with  that  of  a  rhino  at  p.  178),  and  writes  :  "  We 
stayed  for  three  days  at  Mitito  Andei  and  bagged  three 
of  these  animals.  I  only  saw  one  really  good  head  in 
all  the  time,  for  ours  are  only  24  ins.  the  best.  The 
great  difficulty  is  in  seeing  these  antelopes  before  they 
see  you,  for  their  peculiar  coloration  and  the  thickness 
of  the  bush  makes  them  all  but  invisible." 


II.  On  the  Alertness  of  Game 

All  wild  game  are  by  nature  w^atchful  and  alert. 
Never,  for  a  single  moment,  is  the  contingency  of  danger 
entirely  absent  from  their  minds :  and  this  is  reflected 
in  every  attitude  and  expression.  But  in  East  Africa, 
where  man  is  but  one  (and  that  a  minor  quantity)  amidst 
numerous  more  dreaded  enemies,  those  characteristics  are 
accentuated  to  a  degree  that,  it  may  be,  lies  beyond  the 
power  of  pen  or  pencil  to  depict. 

Parenthetically  may  be  added  the  remark  that  the 
man  who  would  match  himself  against  such  animals 
must  also  be  alert. 

Illustrative  of  this  point : — How^  rarely  does  one 
here  see  game  lying  down,  or  in  positions  of  complete 
repose  ?  True,  during  months  spent  on  the  open  veld, 
one  does  occasionally  view  such  scenes ;  but  they  are 
exceptional.  One  can  almost  recall  to  mind  each 
instance. 

These  remarks,  of  course,  do  not  apply  to  the  great 
pachyderms  which  have  nothing  to  fear — save  man 
alone ;  and  in  minor  degree  to  buffalo,  which,  being 
nocturnal  in  habit,  lie  down  all  day,  but  usually  in  the 
densest  and  most  impenetrable  jungle.  The  rhino  takes 
his  daily  siesta  quite  openly,  often  lying  down  beneath 
some  solitary  tree  in  quite  exposed  situation.  Yet, 
curiously,  the  elephant  never  lies  down.  In  all  his  long 
experience,    Arthur   Neumann    (if   I    remember   aright 


I  ^ 

1  ■> 


5      3      >  5 


5  J  1 


LESSER   KOODOO. 

(Marquis  de  la  Scala.) 


Arr/ar,  tlioto. 
AN    18-FT.    PYTHON    WITH    \\ATEKBUCK    CALF    IT   HAD   KILLED. 


STRAY   NOTES  293 

wliat  he  told  me)  had  only  once  seen  an  elephant 
lying. 

I  cannot  call  to  mind  ever  seeing  either  wildebeests 
or  zebras  do  so  in  East  Africa ;  though  several  such 
instances  recur  to  memory  in  the  case  of  sing-sing, 
waterbuck,  gazelles,  and  (more  rarely)  of  hartebeests 
and  impala.  The  habit  is  more  or  less  casual  and 
accidental — not  as  in  Europe,  where  one  sees  the  deer 
(of  all  kinds),  and  goats  also,  regularly  lie  down  by 
day. 

On  writing  to  my  brother  to  confirm  or  confute 
these  remarks,  he  replies  :  "It  seems  to  me  c[uite 
correct.  One  never  sees  game  asleep.  The  best 
instance  I  can  remember  was  on  the  Molo  at  Ya- 
Nabanda,  where,  to  the  west  of  the  river,  I  found  a 
company  of  Jackson's  hartebeests  all  lying  down  on  a 
bare  patch  of  red  soil  that  exactly  assimilated  with  their 
own  colour.  The  details  impressed  themselves  on  my 
memory;  for  when  I  had  stalked  to  within  250  yards, 
there  intervened  a  belt  of  long  grass  through  which  I 
intended  to  creep  close  up ;  but  in  it  there  were  some 
zebras  feeding.  After  waiting  a  long  time,  as  the  zebras 
did  not  move,  I  sent  Mehemet  back,  telling  him  to  go 
round  in  a  circuit  to  the  windward,  without  showing. 
Soon  after  he  had  gone,  the  zebras  suddenly  threw  up 
their  heads  and  cantered  off — the  hartebeests,  of  course, 
also  jumping  up  and  moving  away.  Mehemet  was  back 
almost  immediately,  looking  scared  out  of  his  wits.  He 
said  he  had  come  on  two  lions  stalking  the  zebras,  and 
on  looking  in  the  direction  he  pointed  out,  I  certainly 
saw  some  animal  '  louping '  away  through  the  grass, 
but  too  far  to  distinguish.  This  was,  so  far  as  I  can 
recollect,  the  only  instance  of  seeing  a  herd  of  harte- 
beests (though  I  once  or  twice  saw  single  animals) 
lying  down." 

W adds  :  "  That  zebra  you  fluked  (see  p.  107) 

was  certainly  standing  asleep,  and  I  never  did  see 
zebras  lying  down." 

It  should,  however,  be  added  that  during  the  intense 


294  ON   SAFARI 

heat  of  midday,  when  game  would  be  most  likely  to  lie 
down,  we,  as  a  rule  (but  not  invariably),  retired  to  our 
tents  and  laid  down  ourselves. 

This  high  development  of  alertness  in  East- African 
game  is  clearly  due — not  to  the  influence  of  white  man, 
who  has  only  hunted  here  during  the  last  few  years,  but 
to  the  presence  of  their  innumerable  natural  enemies. 


CHAPTER  XXV 

PROTECTION  OF  BIG  GAME 
(specially    in    EELATION    to    BRITISH    EAST    AFRICA) 

A  MAIN  outstandiuoj  dauoer  to  bio;  game  lies  in  its 
abundance.  Its  very  numbers  deceive ;  and  especially 
does  that  remark  apply  in  Africa,  where  many  of  the 
larger  animals  live  conspicuous  on  the  open  plain. 

It  is  not  matter  for  wonder  that  new-comers,  or 
settlers  (men,  it  may  be,  who  have  never  before  in  their 
lives  seen  game,  great  or  small),  conclude  that,  amidst 
abundance,  they  may  slaughter  without  stint. 

But  are  the  thouohtful  amonor  us  never  goinsr  to  learn 
the  obvious  lesson — shall  we  always  blind  our  eyes  to 
the  staring  examples  of  the  past  ?  Whole  faunas,  as 
rich  as  those  that  yet  survive,  and  richer,  have  been 
swept  off  the  face  of  the  earth  during  our  generation  and 
under  our  eyes.  Witness  that  abominable  massacre  of 
the  bison  on  Western- American  prairies.  That  was 
accomplished  in  a  single  decade — in  the  'eighties. 
AVituess,  again,  the  destruction  of  the  reindeer  in  Norway 
in  the  'nineties.  That  piece  of  barbarism  occupied  but 
,  five  years — the  five  that  succeeded  the  introduction  of 
cordite  and  cheap  repeating-rifles.  AVitness,  thirdly,  the 
tale  of  ceaseless  slaughter  maintained  during  half-a- 
century  on  South-African  veld — whole  genera  and 
families  of  beautiful  creatures  decimated  or  extirpated 
root  and  branch  by  a  merciless  Boeotian  race  and  scarce 
a  record  left  behind. 

After  the  mischief  has  been  done  the  world  laments 
it.  Herculean  efforts  are  then  made  to  preserve  a  few 
wretched  remnants.     Crocodile- tears  flow  in    scientific 

295 


296  ON   SAFAKI 

places.  With  these  efforts  and  those  tears  I  have  scant 
sympathy.  What  is  wanted  is  something  more  practical 
than  tears — the  energy  to  wake  up  while  yet  there  is 
time,  to  assure  the  safety  and  well-being  of  those 
faunas  that  still  survive,  and  to  render  any  repetition 
of  such  barbarities  impossible,  at  least  on  British  soiL 

Practical  measures,  plus  the  power  to  enforce  them, 
are  the  one  essential ;  and  these  must  be  taken  in 
advance.     Doctors  avail  not  when  the  patient  is  dead. 

In  British  East  Africa,  along  with  our  highland 
domain,  we  have  succeeded  to  a  faunal  inheritance  that 
is  second  to  none  now  surviving  on  earth. ^  That  splendid 
asset  it  is  nothing  less  than  our  duty  to  hand  down 
unimpaired  and  unencumbered  to  future  generations — 
subject  always,  it  goes  without  saying,  to  the  necessities 
of  white  settlement  and  colonisation. 

At  the  moment  no  very  serious  danger  threatens. 
The  Game-ordinances  of  the  Protectorate  are  essentially 
practical,  and  the  one  weak  point — a  shortage  in  the 
power  to  enforce  them — is  being  remedied.  These 
ordinances,  it  is  pertinent  to  point  out,  were  drawn  in 
the  first  instance  (and  amended  as  circumstances  dic- 
tated) by  men  who,  better  than  any  other,  understood  the 
necessities  of  the  Colony  ;  first,  of  course,  in  relation  to 
its  white  population,  while  yet  in  sympathy  with  the 
aborigines — whether  wild  beasts  or  savage  men. 

The  chief  danger  to  big  game  in  all  lands  and  at  all 
times  has  been  the  use  of  the  horse.  Eidina;-dowu  g-ame 
and  then  shooting  at  random  into  flying  herds  is  the 
worst  of  all  barbarisms — to  say  nothing  of  its  being  the 
most  wasteful.  My  own  experience  demonstrates  that 
for  each  head  of  game  killed  by  this  method,  an  average 
of  five  or  six  others  escaped  wounded,  to  die  uselessly  on 
the  veld. 

That  combination  of  horse-and-rifle  together  I  utterly 
condemn.  It  is  unsportsmanlike,  since  not  one  man  in 
a  hundred  can  be  trusted  (or  can  trust  himself)  to  act 

^  It  is  equalled,   nevertheless,   in    British    Central    Africa — in 
Barotseland,  Nyassaland  and  Northern  Rhodesia. 


PROTECTIOX   OF   BIG   GAME  297 

fairly  under  its  circumstance.  The  system  is  essentially 
unfair  to  game  ;  and,  directly  and  indirectly,  is  respon- 
sible for  the  decimation  of  the  Southern  herds.  I  would 
eai'nestly  urge  that  this  "  riding-down  "  of  game  be 
made  illegal  in  our  territories.  Hitherto,  the  vice  has 
barely  made  an  appearance  ;  but  it  is  wise  to  look  ahead, 
and  prevention  will  save  cure. 

Personalty  (though  this  is,  I  fear,  a  counsel  of  per- 
fection) I  would  also  prohibit  the  use  of  repeating-rifles 
on  game.  These  are  military  weapons,  and  should  be 
barred  as  unfair  in  the  field  of  sport. 

A  minor  menace  to  game,  ever  recrudescent  during 
periods  of  passing  depression,  is  a  tendency  in  disap- 
pointed settlers  to  grumble  at  its  bare  existence. 
Precisely  why  game  should  cease  to  exist  when  "  things 
are  bad  "  is  not  explained.  That  is  merely  an  evidence 
of  "  original  sin  "  in  human  nature. 

Here  is  a  modern  instance.  But  two  or  three  years 
ago,  the  traveller-sportsman  was  received  in  East  Africa 
with  open  arms,  welcomed  as  a  benefactor  and  a  power ; 
the  newspapers  rapturously  applauded  the  coming  of 
this  or  that  Ximrod,  recorded  all  his  movements  and 
exploits ;  he  was,  in  short,  received  en  p?'mce — and 
charged  as  such  I  As  a  simple  matter  of  fact,  the 
traveller-sportsman  was  (and  still  remains)  the  best 
customer  of  the  Colony  ;  while  the  game  is  still  its  best 
asset. 

But  a  change  has  come  over  the  spirit  of  this  dream. 
Our  friends  in  East  Africa  have  "  boomed  "  overmuch  ; 
their  speculations  were  unduly  sanguine,  and  they  are 
passing  through  the  consequent  reaction — financial 
crises,  lack  of  credit,  and  that  sort  of  thing.  Of  course 
the  fault  cannot  be  theirs;  a  scapegoat  must  be  found, 
and  "  the  game "  will  serve  the  purpose.  The  local 
newspapers  out  there,  which,  a  year  before,  brimmed  over 
with  praise  of  "  the  glorious  game,"  now  sing  in  opposite 
key.  They  see  (or  pretend  to  see)  a  specific  for  the  ills 
of  over-speculation  and  faulty  foresight,  in  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  Colony's  one  asset  of  present  current  value — 


298  ON   SAFARI 

tlie  game  !  They  advocate  violent  changes,  relaxation 
of  the  game-laws,  reduction  of  "  sanctuaries,"  and  so  on. 
The  logic  of  this  is  sultry,  as  befits  its  tropical  birth- 
place ;  let  us  turn  to  lighter  vein. 

"  Of  what  possible  use  is  the  rhinoceros  ?  Like  the 
bull  in  a  china-shop,  he  is  far  more  dangerous  than 
picturesque ;  he  can  walk  through  a  fence  as  a  nigger 
through  a  melon-patch,  and  is  far  more  destructive. 
What  good  are  such  beasts  as  the  hippo,  lion,  leopard, 
and  buffalo  ?  All  can  only  be  classed  as  the  most 
dangerous  vermin  "  !  Somewhat  grotesc[uely,  these  cogi- 
tations are  still  prefaced  by  the  declaration  that  "  for  the 
preservation  of  the  fauna  of  this  country,  none  is  a 
stronger  advocate  than  the  Editor." 

Now,  my  dear  Mr.  Editor,  have  you  seriously 
considered  that  if  you,  in  a  passing  fit  of  "the  blues," 
decide  on  exterminating  the  rhino,  the  lion  and  all  the 
rest,  that  that  crime  w^ill  remain  irreparable  till  the  end 
of  time  ?  While  there  is,  on  the  other  hand,  no  evidence 
of  any  failure  in  the  race  of  editors.  There  are  ingrates 
who  might  rejoice  to  see  a  few  more  rhinos  and  few^er  .  .  . 
say  thoughtless  scribblers. 

Here  is  another  cjuestion  from  the  same  source  : 
"  Why  should  vast  tracts  be  reserved  as  sanctuaries  for 
game,  and  the  sturdy  immigrant  with  moderate  capital 
be  forbidden  to  settle  thereon  ? "  Well,  I  will  answer 
that  question.  Those  tracts  were  delineated  years  ago 
(by  experts  wdio  knew"  by  long  years'  experience  what 
they  w^ere  doing)  as  absolutely  uninhahitahle  by  man — 
white  or  black.  The  absence  of  water,  the  presence  of 
tsetse-fiy,  malaria  and  such-like  natural  causes  preclude 
these  regions  ever  being  settled  upon.  They  are  useless 
for  any  other  purpose,  and  are  therefore  reserved  for 
game.  If  you,  my  "  sturdy  immigrant,"  don't  know 
this,  it  is  clear  you  need  some  one  to  tell  you  for  your 
own  advantage.  But,  cjuite  possibly,  you  do  know  it 
all ;  3'et  still  want  to  settle  on  forbidden  ground  merely 
because  it  is  forbidden — out  of  sheer  "  cussedness,"  in 
short.     Again,  it  is  conceivable  (to  those  w^ho  have  been 


PROTECTION   OF   BIG   GAME  299 

there)  that  some  may  even  wish  to  settle  on  waterless 
Eeserves  with  an  idea  of  getting  superior  shooting 
what  time  that  "  moderate  capital  "  lasts  ! 

The  chief  Game-Eeserve  attacked  in  these  ad 
captandum  lucubrations  (indeed,  the  only  one,  since 
the  others  are  as  yet  merely  nominal  tracts  far  beyond 
any  present  question  of  white  occupation)  is  the  great 
Athi  Plains  Reserve.  Now  the  contention  that  white 
men  are  prohibited,  in  the  interests  of  game,  from 
settling  upon  these  Athi  Plains  is  childish  nonsense, 
designed  in  most  instances  to  deceive  the  ignorant,  or 
— worse  still — to  create  prejudice.  For  the  Athi 
Plains  are  uninhabitable  by  man,  whether  white  or 
black,  by  reason  of  the  absence  of  water.  They  extend 
over  upwards  of  100  miles  in  length  east  and  west,  and 
throughout  that  vast  stretch  there  is  no  permanent 
water  between  Makindu  at  mile  209  and  the  Athi  River 
at  mile  311. 

What  is  the  sturdy  immigrant  going  to  do  here  ? 
He  could  not  survive  for  a  week,  nor  could  his  cattle. 
Then  how,  you  ask,  do  those  vast  herds  of  game  survive  ? 
The  bulk  of  these,  I  reply,  rec[uire  no  water.  Nature 
has  so  designed  her  creatures  that,  for  many,  the 
abundant  night-dews  suffice  to  quench  thirst.  These 
never  drink,  though  some  have  means  of  Cjuenching 
thirst  in  certain  bulbous  water-bearing  roots  that  they 
dig  up  from  underground.  The  others  migrate.  The 
blue  wildebeest,  for  example,  and  the  zebra  drink  twice 
daily.  Both  these  species  may  be  seen  thousands 
strong  on  the  Athi  Plains  one  week  or  one  month ;  the 
next  they  have  disappeared.  Hardly  one  remains. 
They  have  moved  away — perhaps  hundreds  of  miles 
across  country — to  the  nearest  permanent  water.  The 
sturdiest  settler  cannot  do  this.  He  must  stay  where  he 
is — and  die. 

We  will  assume  that  our  friend  the  immigrant 
admits  these  simple  facts  as  regards  the  Athi  Plains. 
He  abandons  that  waterless  downland,  but  still  contends 
that  he  is  prohibited  from  settling  in  the  bush-country 


300  ON    SAFARI 

to  the  east,  wliere  water  exists  in  abundance,  but 
which  is  still  within  the  Game-Reserve. 

Let  such  men  read  Blue-book  No.  519 — the  "Colo- 
nial Report  on  East  Africa  for  1905-6  "  (price  seven- 
pence,  Wyman  &  Sons,  Fetter  Lane,  E.G.).  Therein 
will  be  found  set  forth  the  reasons  which  comjoelled  the 
Government  to  abandon  their  attempt  to  farm  at 
Makindu.  With  all  its  resources  of  British  credit,  that 
experimental  farm  utterly  failed  to  succeed  :  (1)  Be- 
cause the  tsetse-flv  killed  all  the  oxen  and  other  stock  ; 
(2)  because  malarial  fever  constantly  prostrated  both  the 
superintendent  and  the  labourers  ! 

If,  before  entering  on  specious  argument,  people 
would  take  the  trouble  to  master  these  solid  facts 
(ascertained  by  practical  experiment  at  the  public  cost), 
instead  of  airing  their  own  silly  superficial  theories,  we 
should  hear  no  more  of  the  cant  about  game,  on  the 
one  hand,  or  "  sturdy  immio^rants,"  on  the  other. 

No  sane  man  has  ever  advocated  that  the  interests 
of  game  should  take  precedence  of  the  interests  of  white 
man,  or  that  areas  available  for  settlement  should  be 
reserved  for  oame.  But  there  are  areas — such  as  the 
Athi  Plains — not  available  for  settlement.  On  these  it 
is  our  plain  duty  to  see  that  fair-play  is  extended  to 
God's  beautiful  wild  creation. 

Lest  I  be  suspected  of  partiality,  let  me  quote  a 
recent  message  on  this  point  from  President  Roosevelt 
to  our  Society  for  the  Preservation  of  the  Fauna  of 
THE  Empire  : — "  It  is  perfectly  evident  to  any  intelligent 
man  that  the  people  who  are  protesting  against  what 
they  call  '  the  curse  of  the  big  game  '  do  not  know  what 
they  are  talking  about.  AVe  have  just  such  people  in 
abundance  here  in  America,  and  I  have  for  twenty-five 
years  waged  war  upon  them  in  connection  with  game- 
protection." 

I  have  selected  East-African  sources  for  these 
strictures  inasmuch  as  it  is  just  this  sort  of  rubbish  that 
is  copied  into  our  papers  at  home,  with  the  result  of 
making    confusion     worse    confounded.     There    follow 


PROTECTION   OF   BIG   GAME  301 

puerile  questions  in  Parliament — frequently  framed  to 
mask  some  secondary  object — and  tlie  replies  given  at 
least  illumine  the  outer  darkness  that  reigns  in  some 
official  minds  in  Whitehall. 

Next  we  have  trotted- out  (and,  mind  you,  not  as 
theories  or  even  as  honest  beliefs,  but  set  forth  cate- 
gorically as  solid  facts,  proven  and  beyond  doubt)  all 
those  rule-of-thumb  traditions  that  game  transmit 
diseases  or  the  germs  thereof.  Statements  are  made  in 
positive  terms  that  such-and-such  a  species  conveys 
infection  of  a  particular  kind — say  "  East-Coast  fever  " 
— that  another  contaminates  by  ticks  or  similar  parasites, 
and  so  on.  Witness  the  tsetse-fly,  for  example,  and  the 
acres  of  theory  written  on  that  insect  by  men  who 
possibly  never  spent  an  hour  on  the  study  of  its  life- 
history  and  economy. 

Now  here,  at  any  rate,  we  touch  questions  and 
problems  of  serious  importance ;  and  such  shall  not  be 
treated  in  any  spirit  of  levity.  None  will  deny  that 
there  may  exist  foundation  for  such  ideas.  They  may 
be  correct  or  they  may  not.  But  until  the  cpiestions 
have  been  subjected  to  the  test  of  scientific  incjuiry,  it 
is  mere  prejudice  to  proclaim  them  as  facts. 

These  are  complex  points  in  biology.  They  involve 
nothing  less  than  the  whole  spacious  cjuestion  of  human 
interference  with  Nature's  balance  of  life  over  vast  areas 
never  hitherto  subjected  to  the  dominion  of  civilised 
man. 

The  determination  of  these,  with  other  analo2:ous 
points,  is  of  the  first  importance  to  the  development  on 
pastoral  lines  of  our  dominions  in  Eastern  Africa  ;  and  it 
is  the  duty  of  the  Home  Government  towards  its  African 
Colonies  to  appoint  technical  experts  to  study  these 
cjuestions  on  the  spot.  Such  investigation  would 
involve  prolonged  research — probably  extending  to 
years.  In  the  meantime,  all  opinion  is  merely  specula- 
tive, nothing  more  than  guess-work ;  and  to  condemn 
the  game  beforehand  is  some  degrees  more  absurd  than 
hanging  a  man  first  and  trying  him  afterwards. 


302  ON   SAFARI 

I  began  by  saying  that  tlieir  apparent  abundance 
was  in  the  nature  of  a  menace  to  big  game.  So  it  is ; 
for  they  cannot  exist  in  face  of  excessive  shooting.  All 
experience  the  world  over  clinches  that  fact.  Compare 
the  physical  conditions  of  large  game  with  small.  The 
latter,  with  their  large  broods  and  early  maturity, 
increase  by  three-  or  four-fold  each  year ;  and  of  that 
increase  the  greater  proportion  is  available  for  human 
use.  Large  animals,  on  the  contrary,  with  their  single 
young,  or  perhaps  two  at  a  birth,  and  their  years  of 
immaturity,  increase  but  slowly  ;  while  of  that  increase 
at  least  two-thirds  (in  Africa)  is  needed  for  the  support 
of  lions,  leopards  and  other  carnivora.  The  proportion 
remaining  for  the  use  (or  sport)  of  man  is  necessarily 
small.  It  certainly  cannot  exceed  five  per  cent,  and  I 
would  not  myself  estimate  it  at  more  than  three  per  cent, 
per  annum  on  the  entire  stock.  A  recognition  of  these 
facts  by  hunters  and  settlers  would  go  far  towards 
perpetuating  the  big  game  of  British  East  Africa.  If 
regarded  merely  as  targets  for  rifle-practice,  the  game 
will  go,  and  that  soon. 

The  future  of  the  game  depends  largely  on  the 
settlers.  Now  most  Britishers  possess  (more,  at  least, 
than  any  other  race)  imbued  in  their  hearts  the  true 
spirit  of  a  sportsman.  Latent  it  may  be,  but  true  none 
the  less,  and  I  venture  to  ask  them  to  accept  from  me 
this  definition  of  a  sportsman  : — "  One  who  loves  game 
as  thouorh  he  were  the  father  of  it." 


APPENDIX 

ROUGH  VELD-NOTES  ON  BIRD-LIFE  IN  BRITISH 

EAST  AFRICA 

In  Equatorial  Africa  a  British,  or  even  a  European,  ornitho- 
logist finds  himself  transplanted  from  his  (more  or  less)  familiar 
Paloearctic  avifauna  and  plunged  into  a  totally  new  bird-world — 
that  of  the  "  Ethiopian  Region." 

Strange  forms  and  new  families  in  bewildering  variety  meet 
one's  eye  at  every  point.  Former  knowledge  and  experience 
help  but  little.     One  must  begin  the  new  study  ah  initio. 

Under  such  circumstances,  the  utility  of  printing  cursory 
observations  made  during  two  limited  periods  (though  these 
include  both  the  summer  and  winter  seasons)  may  be  doubtful — 
the  more  so,  as  our  own  main  objective  having  always  been  the 
big-game,  that  alone  precluded  the  handling  of  bird-specimens. 
Hence  most  of  these  rough  notes,  and  all  the  sketches,  were 
made  solely  from  observation  of  their  subjects  in  the  open  field 
— never  a  sufficiently  accurate  basis. 

The  assistance  of  my  friends  on  the  spot,  Mr.  F.  J.  Jackson, 
C.B.,  Lieut.-Governor  of  British  East  Africa,  and  Mr.  Geoffrey 
F.  Archer,  District-Commissioner  at  Baringo  (now  at  Mumias), 
and  of  Mr.  W.  R.  Ogilvie-Grant  at  home,  Lave  encouraged  me  to 
add  these  bird-notes  and  bird-sketches,  in  the  hope  that  (while 
admittedly  valueless  to  "  advanced "  scientific  ornithologists) 
they  may  yet  interest  and  perhaps  even  instruct  ordinary  bird- 
loving  readers  both  at  home  and  in  Africa. 

Further  to  increase  the  difficulty  of  the  subject,  it  may  be 
added,  there  are  in  Equatoria  two  distinct  breeding-seasons,  one 
lasting  from  October  to  December,  the  other  in  April  and  May. 
The  bulk  of  the  Passeres,  however,  appear  to  prefer  the  former. 

Many  notes  on  birds  having  been  already  included  in  the 

303 


304  ON   SAFARI 

narrative,  I  Lave  inserted,  in  the  following  list,  page-references 
in  nearly  all  such  cases,  in  order  to  avoid  repetition. 


GAME-BIRDS 

Fkancolins 

These  are  the  chief  Game-birds  of  Africa,  and  not  ap- 
preciably dissimilar  from  our  Partridge  and  Grouse  of  Europe, 
whether  in  flight  or  in  general  appearance.  The  number  of 
species  recognised  throughout  this  continent  runs  into  scores,  of 
which  a  dozen  are  found  within  our  limits.  We  met  with  the 
following — 

TRUE    FEANCOLINS 

1.  Ulu  Francolin — Francolinus  uluensis.     This  is  the  bird  of 

the  Athi  Plains.     Interrupted  collar  of  black  and  white. 

2.  Grant's  Francolin — F.  granti.     At  Baringo,  a  small  species. 

3.  Coqui  Francolin — F.  coqui.   In  the  Rift  Valley,  found  in  open 

country.  A  small,  thickset,  short-tailed  species,  size  of 
English  partridge  and  of  equal  wing  speed  ;  lies  close  and 
rises  in  coveys.     This  is  the  "  Swimpi "  of  Transvaal. 

4.  Schuett's  Francolin — F.  schnetti.     Abundant  in   the  thick 

bush  at  Makindu,  Voi,  etc.,  also  at  Naivasha.  A  big  dark- 
brown  bird,  buff  below ;  with  double  spurs. 

5.  Hildebrandt's  Francolin — F.Mldehrandti.    Also  in  the  bush- 

country  at  Makindu  and  on  the  Tana.  The  sexes  differ  so 
much  that  they  were  originally  described  as  separate 
species.     The  northern  form  of  the  "  Natal  partridge." 

Besides  these,  Mr.  Jackson  has  also  recorded  the  following  — 

6.  Ring-necked    Francolin — F.    streiJtophorus.     Below  Mount 

Elgon.  It  is  distinguished  by  the  ring  of  black  and  white 
feathers  round  the  neck.     No  spurs. 

7.  Elgon  Francolin — F.  clgonensis.     Shot  on  Mount  Elgon  at 

11,000  ft.  A  northern  form  of  the  well-known  "Red- 
wing Partridge  "  of  South  Africa,  but  darker. 

8.  Jackson's  Francolin — F.jacksoni.     Masailand.     The  largest 

species  of  all.     Bill  and  legs  coral-red  ;  single  spurs. 


APPENDIX  305 

SPUR-FOWL 

Strictly  speaking,  the  name  "  Spur- Fowl  "  is  applicable  only 
to  an  Indian  genus,  that  of  Gallojjerdix.     It  has,  however,  been 
adopted  in  East  Africa  for  these  bare-throated  Francolins. 
9.  Cabanis'  bare-throated  Spur-Fowl — Pternistes  infuscatus.  In 
thick  bush  at  Sultan  Hamud,  Makindu,  Voi,  etc.     A  big 
bird,  and  noisy.     Male  has  double  spurs. 
10.  Humboldt's  Spur-Fowl — P.  humholdti.     On  Tana. 

Quails 

Three  species  are  found — 

1.  European  Quail — Coturnix  communis.     Scarce. 

2.  Harlequin  Quail — G.  delegorguei.     Under-parts  ruddy  chest- 

nut ;  throat  black.     Abundant. 

3.  Kurrichaine    Button-Quail — Turnix   hpurana.      On    lower 

levels,  as  at  Simba,  Baringo,  etc.     Abundant. 

GUINEA-FOWL 

Four  species  are  found,  to  wit — 

1.  Reichenow's  Large  Helmeted  Guinea-Fowl — Numidareich- 

enoivi.  This  is  the  common  kind.  The  huge  bony  crest 
or  "  helmet "  stands  vertically  upright,  as  sketched  on  p.  16. 
Bare  skin  of  face  blue,  wattles  bright  red. 

2.  Abyssinian  Helmeted  Guinea-Fowl — N.  jjtilorhyncha.    From 

Baringo  northwards.  Abounds  in  packs  of  from  50  to  100 
and  upwards  in  the  thorny  bush  on  hillsides  and  on  the 
scrubby  plains.  All  these  birds  roost  gregariously  in  trees, 
and  at  sundown,  preparatory  to  "  treeing,"  awake  the  echoes 
with  their  cackling.  A  bunch  of  grey  bristles  at  gape  ; 
helmet  horn  colour.  Both  the  bare  skin  of  face  and  neck 
as  well  as  the  wattles  are  blue. 

3.  Curly-crested  Guinea-Fowl — Guttcra pucherani.    The  helmet 

is  replaced  by  a  tuft  of  curly  feathers  on  crown.  The 
naked  skin  of  head  is  blue,  except  the  throat,  which  is 
red.     Frequents  wooded  riversides  in  the  lower  country. 

4.  Vulturine      Guinea-Fowl — Acryllium     vidturinum.       This 

splendid  bird  has  a  bright  blue  breast  and  shoulders,  the 
neck-hackles  long  and  plume-like,  with  bold  white  shaft- 
streaks,  and  a  long  tail  like  a  hen-pheasant.  The  naked 
parts  are  lead-blue,  with  a  collar  of  dark-chestnut  hair-like 

X 


306  ON    SAFARI 

feathers  round  the  occiput.     Iricles  crimson.     Localities, 
Tana,  Sabaki,  etc. 

Sand-Grouse 

1.  Bridled  Sand-Grouse — Pt erodes  decmxitiis.  Small.  Black  below. 

2.  Chestnut-throated  Sand-Grouse — P.  gutturalis.     The  largest 

of  the  three.     Lower  parts  deep  chestnut. 

3.  Pintailed  Sand-Grouse — Pteroclurus  exushis.     Has  long  pin- 

tail.    Abundant.     Lower  parts  nearly  white. 

All  three  kinds  can  be  seen  daily  by  the  rivers 
comincr  down  to  drink  half-an-hour  after  dawn.  With 
their  swift  flight  they  afford  tl)e  smartest  of  shooting  both 
then  and  again  towards  dusk. 

[Note. — In  the  Transvaal  I  found  eggs  of  the  Double- 
banded  Sand-Grouse  (P.  hicindus)  on  July  1 — the  seasonal 
equivalent  of  our  New  Year's  Day — which  shows  how  "  mixed  " 
is  the  African  breeding-season.  The  incident  was  impressed  on 
memory  because,  while  carrying  the  eggs  in  my  shirt-front  (we 
wear  no  coats  thereaway),  I  walked  right  into  a  big  waterbuck 
bull  fast  asleep  under  a  bush,  and  was  unable  to  handle  the 
rifle  by  reason  of  those  blessed  oological  treasures  !  We  found 
other  nests,  each  with  three  egg^,  on  20th  and  26th  of  July;  but 
meanwhile,  on  the  19th,  had  caught  a  newly-fledged  young  bird 
already  able  to  fly.     Its  irides  were  brown.] 


Pigeons 

Olive,  or  Spotted  Wood-Pigeon — Columha  arquatrix.  A  dark- 
coloured  Wood-Pigeon,  size  of  a  cushat,  partially  spotted  ; 
bill  and  legs  bright  yellow.  A  bird  of  dense  forest,  such 
as  the  Mau,  and  Kikuyu  Forest,  near  Nairobi. 
Triangular-spotted  Pigeon — C.  gidnea.  A  Wood-pigeon,  maroon- 
coloured  on  neck,  shoulders,  and  breast:  rump  light  grey. 
A  bird  of  open  woods,  such  as  those  of  Naivasha,  etc.  Settles 
on  ground  like  a  cushat. 
Green  Pigeons — Three  species  as  under,  all  frequenting  thin 
open  forest  or  bush-country — 

Vinngo  nudirostris.     Common. 
„       loakefiddi. 
delalandei. 


APPENDIX  307 

Doves — innumerable 

Collared  Turtle-Dove — TvMur  semitorquatus.  This  is  the  bird 
whose  everlasting  dactylic  note  "  Chnck-her-up,  Chiick- 
her-iip,"  awakens  one  every  morning  throughout  the 
length  of  Africa.  Another,  whose  note  is  "  Chock-taw," 
is,  I  believe,  T.  scncgalcnsis,  the  Laughing-Dove,  and 
T.  damarensis  is  also  abundant,  with  many  other  species. 

Namaqua  Dove,  or  Long- tailed  African  Dove — (Una  capcnsis. 
The  smallest  of  all,  no  bigger  than  a  Wagtail.     Abundant. 

Spot-winged  Ground-Dove — ChaIco2)eIia  afra.  This  is  common 
near  Mombasa.  Commander  Lynes,  R.N.,  tells  me  he 
found  these  small  doves  breeding  on  October  30.  Their 
tiny  nest  of  small  sticks,  built  in  turtle-dove  style,  con- 
tained two  httle  opaque  cream-coloured  eggs,  fresh.  Sweet 
little  creatures  with  short  tails,  displaying  on  flight  a 
chestnut-coloured  wing  with  pretty  metallic  green  and 
bronze  spots ;  upjDer  breast  vinaceous. 

Rails  and  Crakes 

Water-Hen — GalUnvla  chloropus.  Quite  common,  breeding  on 
Lake  Naivasha  and  elsewhere. 

Crested  Coot — Fulica  cristata.  The  same  remark  applies. 
Abounds  on  Elmenteita,  and  on  Naivasha  in  thousands. 

Kaffir  Water-Rail — Eallns  CcTrvlcscens.  Observed  on  Naivasha 
in  May,  doubtless  breeding,  though  the  fact  could  not  be 
proved  without  infraction  of  law.  Three  examples,  how- 
ever, were  shot  by  Jackson  on  Olbolossat  Swamp  in  July, 
and  their  breeding  thereat  was  proved  by  his  taking  a 
nestling  from  the  crop  of  Marsh-Harrier  shot  close  by. 

Black  Water-Rail — Limnocorax  niger.  This  red-legged  black  Rail 
was  observed  at  Njemps — probably  common.  I  obtained 
it  also  in  the  Transvaal.     Irides  red  ;  bill  yellowish-green. 

Corncrake — Crco:  pratcnsis.  Occurs  throughout  Africa  in  winter 
— as  far  south  as  Pretoria. 

FiNFOOT 

Peter's  Finfoot — Podica  jjctcrsi.  We  did  not  meet  with  this 
and  I  am  not  sure  that  it  occurs  in  the  Protectorate ;  but 


308  ON   SAFARI 

mention  it  here  as  it  was  the  first  bird  I  shot  in  South 
Africa,  and  an  examination  of  its  extraordinary  "nonde- 
script "  build  went  far  to  discourage  any  further  study  of 
Ethiopian  ornithology — were  all  African  forms  one-tenth 
so  "aberrant,"  the  attempt  seemed  well-nigh  hopeless! 
This  Imfoot  was  swimming  among  heavy  reed-beds  in  a 
marsh  near  Nel's  Spruit,  Transvaal,  and  the  following  is 
the  note  I  then  made  :  "Like  a  Muscovy-Duck  so  far  as 
it  resembles  anything  I  ever  saw  :  but  with  the  beak  of  a 
Grebe,  thouoh  orano-e  in  colour ;  the  stiff  tail  of  a 
Cormorant;  the  lobed  feet  of  a  Coot,  but  orange-yellow 
like  a  Mallard's.     Weight  about  8  lbs." 

Grebes 

Great  Crested  Grebe — Podici'pes.  crisiatus. 
South  African  Dabchick — P.  capensis. 

Both  these  abound  on  Elmenteita,  Naivasha,  Xakuru 
and  other  lakes. 

Wadees 

Curlew — Numenms  arqiiatus.     Common  on  coast,  winter. 

Whimbrel — N.  plixopns.  Common  on  coast,  winter.  No  God- 
wits  have  occurred  within  our  knowledge. 

Redshank — Totanus  calidris.  Mombasa,  January — heard  once 
at  niirht. 

Greenshank — T.  canescens.     On  inland  lakes  ;  always  solitary. 

Green  Sandpiper — T.  ochropus.  On  inland  lakes;  always 
solitary. 

Wood-Sandpiper — T.  glareola.     One,  Karriendoos,  February  13. 

Terek  Sandpiper — Terehia  cinerea.  With  upturned  yellow  bill 
like  a  Godwit's — two  shot  on  coast  (Archer). 

Curlew-Sandpiper — Tringa  subarquata, — Common  on  coast. 

Common  Sandpiper — T.  hyp)oUuca.  Common  in  winter  through- 
out Africa,  on  river,  lake  and  marsh. 

Ruff — Machetes  p)ngnax.     Precisely   the   same  remark   applies  ; 

ubiquitous  in  winter  in  East  Africa. 

Turnstone — Strcpsilas  interpres.']    ^^  l      •  ^ 

c,      T    ^-  ^<  1-  1  .  ■      -  Common  on  coast,  wmter. 

banderling — Calidris  arenaria.  J 


1 


APPENDIX  309 

A  Sanderling  was  shot  b}--  Archer  on  Albert  Nyanza  in 
December. 

Little  Stint — Tringa  minuta.  Ubiquitous  on  all  African  lakes, 
as  well  as  on  the  coast. 

Temminck's  Stint — T.  tcmmincM.  On  Lakes  Barincjo  and 
Naivasha,  winter.     Rare. 

Ringed  Plover — j^gialitis  hiaticula.  Frequents  in  winter  the 
upland  plains,  such  as  Athi ;  also  observed  on  lakes  and 
every  small  marsh  of  the  veld. 

Another  species  of  Ringed  Plover  (I  believe  ^.  jjccu- 
arii(s)  is  resident,  breeding  on  sandhills  on  the  coast  and  also 
at  Naivasha  in  May.  It  there  buries  its  eggs  in  the  dried 
mud  whence  the  lake  has  receded ;  or  rather  the  shallow 
saucer  in  which  they  lie  is  always  carefully  covered  over 
with  flakes  of  dry  mud  when  the  bird  is  absent  or  alarmed. 
On  return,  she  carefully  scrapes  these  away  (F.  J.  J.). 

Asiatic  Dotterel — ^.  asiaticus.  Abounds  in  flocks  on  the  most 
arid  plains  (Athi,  Bariugo,  etc.)  during  winter.  Just 
before  leaving  in  March,  it  assumes  the  full  chestnut 
breast  of  its  breeding-plumage. 

Grey  Plover — Squatarola  helvetica.  Common  on  coast  in 
winter ;  and  once  observed  at  Baringo  in  February 
(Archer). 

Spur-winged  Plover — Hophyptcrus  sp)eciosus.  A  handsome  species, 
in  appearance  recalling  the  last-named  when  in  its  fullest 
summer  dress.  This  plover  abounds  on  lake-shores, 
marshes,  etc.,  where  it  annoys  the  wildfowler  by  warning 
more  valuable  birds  of  the  presence  of  danger. 

Riippell's    Lapwing,    or    Black-winged     Plover  —  StcpTianibyx 

mdanoptcrus. 
Crowned  Lapwing — S.  coronatus. 

These  two  are  birds  of  the  drier  plain,  quite  numerous, 
and  the  flrst-named  very  noisy,  often  spoiling  a  "  stalk  " 
by  its  outrageous  cries.  It  performs  the  same  disservice 
to  the  big-game  hunter  that  the  Spur-wang  does  to  the 
wildfowler.  It  has  red  less. 
Stilt — Himantop^is  candidus.  We  found  these  abundant  in 
winter  on  Elmenteita,  Naivasha,  etc.  Archer  tells  me  he- 
found  a  stilt  breeding  in  May  on  Lake  Sugota.  This  was 
the  Saddle-backed  Stilt,  H.  Mmantojms  (F.  J.)    Both  Stilt 


310  ON    SAFARI 

and  Avocet  occur  as  far  south  as  the  Orange  River  Colon}', 
The  latter  we  did  not  happen  to  observe  in  East  Africa. 

Snipes 

Five  species  are  met  with — 

1.  Gallinago  majoi — Solitary  Snipe.     Observed  by  us  on  Lake 

Elmenteita  in  February — see  p.  146.  Not  common,  but 
Archer  tells  us  he  shot  several  at  Butiaba,  Albert  Nyanza, 
in  November — December. 

2.  G.  gallinago.     Common  Snipe. 

3.  G.  gallinula.     Jack-Snipe. 

Both  quite  exceptional  in  East  Africa.  Archer,  however, 
shot  a  single  example  of  each  on  the  Albert  Nyanza. 

4.  G.  nigripcnnis — Black-winged  Snipe.     This  is  the  snipe  of 

East  Africa,  abundant  in  winter  on  every  marsli  or 
splashy  corner.  It  cannot,  I  think,  be  distinguished  on 
the  wing  from  our  European  snipe,  whether  by  its  flight 
or  cry.  Mr.  Archer  tells  me  that  at  Butiaba  he  shot  all 
five  species  of  snipe  in  one  day's  march — the  fifth  being — 

5.  Rhynchiea  capensis — the  Painted  Snipe. 

Coursers 

I  had  not  the  luck  to  see  any  of  these,  though  at  least  two 
species  occur  on  the  Athi  Plains,  and  four  have  been  recorded  in 
East  Africa — 

1.  Temminck's  Courser — Cursorms  temminchi. 

2.  Hartlaub's  Courser — Rhinoptilus  hisignahcs. 

3.  Banded  Courser — B.  cindus. 

4.  Bronze-winged  Courser — R.  chalcopterus. 

PllATINCOLES 

Pratincole — Glarcola  pratincola.  Found  in  mid- winter  in  packs 
of  thirty  or  forty  on  the  driest  and  most  arid  plains  of 
Athi,  Naivasha  and  Baringo.  Rising  close  at  hand,  they 
woulfl  only  fly  a  few  yards  before  all  "  plumped "  down 
again  in  a  mass. 

Archer  found  another  Pratincole  {G.  emini)  breeding 


APPENDIX  311 

on  rocky  islets  of  Victoria  Nyanza  in  August.  Two  or 
three  nests  were  found,  the  eggs  being  stone-grey  with 
dark  blotches. 

Jacanas 

African  Red  Jacana — Adophilus  africanus.  Abundant  in 
swamps,  as  on  the  Molo  at  Njemps,  running  on  the 
floating  leaves  of  Avater-lilies  and  other  aquatic  plants. 
They  take  wing  more  readily  than  the  Rails. 

Stone-Curlews 

Observed  at  several  points,  but  nowhere  commonly.     Two 
species  occur — 

1.  South-African  Thick-knee — CEcUcnemus  capensis. 

2.  Vermiculated  Thick-knee — CE.  vermiculatm. 


Bustards 

Kori  Bustard — Eupodotis  kori.  This  splendid  species,  with 
strongly-mottled  wing  and  buff-coloure  1  back,  finely  ver- 
miculated, and  a  head  more  like  that  of  a  bittern,  is 
abundant  on  open  or  thinly-bushed  veld,  and  affords  fine 
stalking  with  rifle.  It  can  rarely  be  approached  within 
one  hundred  yards.     Figured  at  p.  77. 

Despite  its  broad  spread  of  Aving  and  apparent  bulk, 
the  Kori  Bustard  is  comparatively  a  slim-built  bird,  falling 
far  below  the  European  Bustard  in  weight.  Those  we 
shot  on  the  Molo  and  at  Baringo  never  exceeded  25  lbs., 
and  the  heaviest  weighed  by  Mr.  Jackson  was  28  lbs.; 
whereas  Otis  tarda  in  Spain  commonly  reaches  30  to 
32  lbs.,  and  one  exceptionally  heavy  old  male  which  I  gave 
to  the  National  Collection  at  South  Kensington  weighed 
37  lbs. 

The  expanse  of  wing  of  a  Kori  male,  shot  at  Njoro- 
Ilimalo,  we  measured  roughly  as  14  spans,  or  say   Sh  ft. 

Stanley's  Bustard  or  Veld  Paauw — Ncotis  caffra.  This  is  a  true 
Bustard,  and  althoug;h  so  much  smaller  than  the  Kori,  is  a 
compact,  solid  bird,  weighing  from  10  to  11  lbs.     During 


312 


ON   SAFARI 


the  breeding- time,  in  April,  this  species,  Hke  its  European 
congeners,  exhibits  an  excessive  "  display  " — as   it   were, 
turning  itself  inside  out. 
Florican,  or  Wato  Bustard — Trachelotis  eanicoUis.     Common  on 
plains  of  the  high  veld. 


CROWNED   CRANE. 


Cranes 

Crowned  Crane — Balearica  gibhericeps.  Abundant  both  on  the 
Athi  Plains  and  in  the  Rift  Valley,  frequenting  the  open 
grass-prairie  in  small  groups,  usually  under  half-a-dozen, 
but  uniting  in  packs  towards  dusk,  when,  with  clamorous 
cries,  they  fly  to  roost  in  the  tall   "  fever-trees." 

[Note. — There  were  huge   grey  Cranes    by  Lake    Nakuru 
which  I  imagined  would  be  the  Great  Wattled  Crane  {Bugcranus 


APPENDIX  313 

carunculatus)  of  South  Africa.  I  also  put  clown  in  my  note- 
book the  Whale-headed  Stork,  or  Shoe-bill  {Balieniceps  rex)  as 
observed  ou  that  lake ;  but  neither  of  these  species  has  yet  been 
proved  to  occur  in  this  part  of  British  East  Africa. 

The  true  Cranes,  it  sliould  be  added,  are  not  marsh 
birds,  frequenting  the  drier  lands,  like  bustards,  and  feeding 
on  grain  and  seeds,  varied  by  locusts  and  the  larger  insects.] 

Herons 

Common  Heron — Ardea  cincrca.     Scarce. 

Purple  Heron — A.  purpurea.  1  -,.  , 

-r.1     1   1      J  J  TT  A       7  7    7    riNumerous  everywhere. 

Black-headed  Heron — A.  melanocejjhala.  j  -^ 

Goliath  Heron — A.  goliath.  Lake  Nakuru,  Elmenteita.  In 
South  Africa  nests  in  bushes  or  fallen  trees  over- 
hanging the  rivers  ;  eggs  blue.     See  pp.  37,  138,  141. 

Buff-backed  Heron — Buhidcus  luciclus.  Abundant;  feeding  on 
ticks,  Hies,  and  parasites,  as  it  does  in  Europe,  is  often  seen 
in  attendance  on  big  game,  perching  on  their  backs.  There 
is  a  heronry  of  these  birds  in  a  rocky  ravine  near  "  Lone- 
Tree  "  on  the  Athi  River.  The  nests  are  on  low  thorn- 
trees,  and  the  breeding-season  from  March  till  July. 

Little  Egret — Garzetta  garzetta.  Near  water  only,  and  usually 
solitary. 

Squacco  Heron — Ardeola  ralloides.     Observed  on  Nakuru. 

Night-Heron — Nydicorax  nycticorax.     Observed  on  Nakuru. 

Common  Bittern — Botaurus  stellaris.  We  put  up  what  we  took 
to  be  Bitterns  in  the  reed-beds  of  Stony  Athi  ;  but  these 
may  have  been  immature  examples  of  N.  nycticorax,  for 
Mr.  Jackson  tells  us  he  never  met  with  the  Bittern.  It 
occurs,  however,  in  South  Africa. 

Storks 

Hammer-head — Scoinis  umhretta.  Common  on  all  rivers  where 
muddy  shores  and  islets  afford  it  scope  for  wading  and 
poking  about  in  shallows.  While  watching  for  hippo 
on  the  Athi,  I  saw  this  strange  bird  catch  and  eat  frogs 
and  worm-like  thincjs  that  I  took  to  be  leeches.  It  builds 
an   enormous   stick-nest    on   riverside  trees,  and  (in  the 


314  ON   SAFARI 

Transvaal)  I  "watched  a  pair  carrying  food  to  their  young 
on  June  21.      Sketched  at  p.  220. 

Marabou  Stork — Lcptoptilus  crumeniferus.  At  first  sight,  it 
surprises  one  to  observe  a  bird  obviously  of  the  Stork 
persuasion  performing  the  functions  of  a  Vulture — indeed 
sharing  with  those  scavengers  a  repulsive  meal.  But 
biologists  had  long  ago  demonstrated  the  anatomical 
affinity  that  exists  between  orders  apparently  so  widely 
separated  as  the  Vultures  and  the  Storks.  In  their 
easy  soaring  flight,  floating  for  hours  in  high  heaven, 
without  apparent  exertion,  the  two  possess  a  common 
aptitude.  The  Marabou  is  really  master  of  the  feast, 
and,  stalking  into  the  crowd,  sets  the  huge  Vultures 
flapping  aside  in  dire  dismay  from  that  terrible  bayonet- 
like beak.  Also  gorges  on  locusts — see  p.  99.  The 
Marabou  abounds  in  East  Africa. 

Saddle-billed  Stork,  or  African  Jabiru — Ephippiorhynrluis  sene- 
gcdenis.  Even  that  tremendous  scientific  name  hardly 
does  justice  to  this  giant  among  feathered  fowl ;  which, 
however,  despite  those  murderous  mandibles,  appears  to 
confine  its  attentions  to  frogs  and  the  like  "small  deer" 
on  the  marshy  margins  of  the  lakes.  We  observed  it  on 
Nakuru  and  Elmenteita.,  and  it  is  sketched  at  p.  39. 

White  Stork — Ciconia  alba.  A  winter  migrant,  at  times  cover- 
ing the  plain  in  a  black  and  white  crowd,  doing  invaluable 
service  in  locust-killing. 

White-bellied  Stork — Ahdimia  abdimii.  With  the  above 
were  a  few  of  this  smaller  and  darker  species  that  I  took 
at  the  time  to  be  Black  Storks  (C.  nigra),  which  latter  we 
did  not  observe. 

Ibises 

Glossy  Ibis — Ibis  falcinellus 

Sacred  Ibis — I.  aihiopica. 

Both  species  common  on  all  lakes. 

Hagedash  Ibis — Hagcdasliia  liagcdash.     Common. 

Wood-Ibis — Pseiidotantalus  ibis.  Scattered  over  the  country 
by  wooded  rivers.  A  big  bird,  stork-like  in  colour,  but 
with  a  heavy,  curved  orange  beak.     The  bare  skin  of  the 


APPENDIX  315 

face  (extending  well  behind  the  eyes)  is  bright  red  ;  legs 
reddish.  When  Hying,  the  white  pkimage  displays  a 
sHght  pinkish  tinge,  like  that  of  a  flamingo,  but  less 
pronounced.     Nests  on  trees. 

Geese 

Spur- winged  Goose — Flcctropterus  gamhcnsis.  A  huge  species, 
black  and  white,  common  and  widely  distributed.  Fre- 
quents marshy  plains  and  foreshores,  feeding  by  day,  and 
flighting  to  open  waters  at  sundown  to  roost — as  our 
European  geese  do. 

Egyptian  Goose — ChcnaJopcx  ccgyptiams.  Frequently  met  with 
on  the  driest  grass-prairies  by  day;  also  on  Lake  Elraen- 
teita  both  by  day  and  night. 

Pigmy  Goose — Nettopus  auritus.  At  Kisumu,  on  Victoria 
Nyanza,  frequenting  the  lily-lined   shores. 

Ducks 

Knob-billed  Duck — Sarcidiornis  melanonota.  A  large  species, 
equal  in  bulk  to  many  of  the  Geese,  and  sometimes  called 
the  Black-backed  Goose.  Found  on  Naivasha,  and  the 
commonest  of  all  the  ducks  on  Lake  Baringo. 

White-faced  Tree-Duck — Dcndrocycna  viduata.  This  is  one  of 
the  group  known  as  "  Whistling  Teal,"  some  of  which  also 
freqaent  the  coast.  Two  species,  of  which  D.  vidimta  is 
one,  are  found  on  Baringo,  the  other  being  probably  the 

W^histling  Duck — D.  fulva.  [Note, — This  Duck  is  found 
spread  over  four  continents,  to  wit :  both  North  and 
South  America,  great  part  of  Africa  (including  Mada- 
gascar), and,  in  Asia,  throughout  India,  Ceylon  and 
Burmab. 

Its  congener  last  named,  D.  viduata,  is  also  a  New- 
World  species,  inhabiting  South  America  as  well  as  Africa. 
But  both  strictly  avoid  Europe.] 

Yellow-bill,  or  African  Mallard — Anas  undidata.  Common  in 
East  Africa  and  southwards  to  the  Cape  Colony.  It  fre- 
quents lakes,  such  as  Elmenteita,  in  big  packs,  and 
"flights"  regularly  at  dusk  and  dawn,  often  accompanied 
by  Pintail,  Shoveler,  etc. 


316  ON    SAFARI 

Black  Duck — Anas  Sjyarsa.  Differs  from  the  last  (though  it 
"quacks"  like  a  Mallard)  in  being  of  solitary  habit,  and 
in  frequenting  only  hill-burns  and  wooded  streams.  A 
drake  shot  weighed  3  lb?.,  bill  blue  with  black  patches, 
feet  orange  with  dark  webs.  \¥hite  spots  on  scapulars ; 
speculum  purple. 

Pintail-i^«^/a  acitta.  \    ^^^^^^  European  species  are  all 

Shoveler->S2M^./ia  chjpcata.       r       ^^^^^,1,^^  j^  ..i^ter. 

Garganey — Querqucdula  circiaJ 

Hottentot  Teal — Ncttmm  pundahim.  Common  on  Naivasha, 
Elmenteita  and  Nakuru ;  but  only  found  on  the  hracJcish 
salt-lakes. 

Common  Pochard — Kyroca  ferina. 

South  African  Pochard^i\^.  africana. 

Both  these  are  found  on  the  lakes,  the  latter  especially 
common  on  Naivasha. 

South-African  Stiff-tailed  Duck — Erismatiira  maccoa.  I  recog- 
nised this  singular  duck  at  once  on  Lake  Elmenteita  by 
its  obvious  similitude  to  the  White-faced  Duck  {E.  kuco- 
ce2)hala)  of  Southern  Spain.  Both  are  long,  low,  heavily- 
immersed  diving-ducks;  both  have  the  short  wing  and 
sheeny  plumage  of  a  Grebe,  and  the  long  stiff'  tail  of  a 
Cormorant,  which  both  carry  at  intervals  bolt  upright — as 
it  were  like  a  "jigger-mast." 

I  imagine,  though  I  did  not  see  the  present  species  at 
its  bieedino^-time,  that  it  also  will  then  have  the  bill 
swollen  and  dilated  above. 


Flamingoes 

Flamingo — P?icenicoptenis  roseus.  Frequents  Lake  Nakuru  in 
great  flocks;  also  observed,  though  in  lesser  numbers,  on 
Elmenteita  and  Solai.  Lake  Hannington,  however,  ap- 
pears to  be  their  great  rendezvous.  In  the  course  of 
ages,  they  have  so  defiled  the  shallows  and  foreshores  as 
to  render  the  neighbourhood  of  that  lake  intolerable  to 
white  men. 

Lesser  Flamingo — Fli.  minor.  Observed  in  small  numbers  on 
Nakuru.     Plentiful  elsewhere. 


APPENDIX  317 


Darters 

Snake-birJ,  or  Darter. — Plotus  riifiis.  On  all  large  rivers ;  it 
posts  itself  on  some  dead  bough  overhanging  the  water, 
whence  it  dives,  scarcely  disturbing  the  surface,  and  re- 
turning to  sit  "  spread-eagled "  to  dry.  Sexes  differ 
somewhat  in  colouring.  In  South  Africa  the  Darter 
nests  in  September  in  overhanging  willows,  about  six  or 
eight  feet  above  water-level,  and  often  beneath  the  nests 
of  Herons  {^A.  cincrea  and  A.  mdanocepliala)  in  the  higher 
trees  above.  Nests  lined  with  willow-leaves ;  ecfors  five, 
of  Cormorant-type. 

Cormorants 

White-breasted  Cormorant — Plialacrocorax  lucidus. 

Pigmy  Cormorant — P.  africanus. 

Two  species  of  Cormorants  occur  inland  breeding  on 
wooded  rivers,  as  Athi,  Molo  and  others ;  also  on  all  the 
lakes,  including  the  brackish — such  as  Nakuru  and 
Elmenteita — as  well  as  on  Naivasha. 

Pelicans 

Pelicans — Pdccanus  onocrotalus  and  P.  mfcscens.  Pelicans  were 
observed  in  January  on  the  Nairobi  River,  a  few  miles 
from  the  capital ;  also  on  all  the  big  lakes.  In  August 
we  noticed  a  systematic  southward  migration,  flock  after 
flock  (along  with  wild  geese)  passing  overhead  during 
three  days,  and  all  pointing  towards  Lake  Nakuru. 

There  are  two  kinds  :  the  first-named  a  huge  pinky- 
white  bird ;  the  latter  much  smaller  and  silvery-grey. 

Secretary-birds 

Common  Secretary-Bird — Scrpentarius  secretarms.  Observed 
on  the  open  grass-prairies,  as  mentioned  at  pp.  23-1-5, 
Makes  a  huge  nest  in  low  thorn-trees. 


318  ON   SAFARI 

BIRDS   OF   PREY 

VbLTURES 

Five  species  inhabit  East  Africa,  Of  these,  two  are  small, 
Neophron-like  ;  while  of  the  three  larger  species,  one — the  white- 
headed — is  rarely  met  with.  Thus,  of  the  swarms  of  great 
carrion-vultures  that  promptly  assemble  at  every  kill,  all  belong 
to  the  two  species  first  below  named — 

1.  African    Griffon — Pseiidogyps    africanus.      A    huge    bare- 

necked species,  bigger  and  darker  in  colour  than  the 
European  Griffon,  but  showing  conspicuously  great 
patches  of  white  on  its  lower  plumage.     Swarms. 

2.  Eared,  or  Black  Vulture — Otogtjps  atiriciolaris.      Much  less 

numerous,  though  some  may  always  be  distinguished 
amidst  the  herd  around  a  "kill"  by  their  uniformly 
darker  colour  and  by  the  great  red  lobes,  or  wattles,  on 
their  ears. 

3.  Hooded,  or  White-headed    Vulture — Lo2')Tiogyps   occipitalis. 

Rare,  as  stated  above. 

[Note,  that  though  I  am  here  forced  to  use  three  separate 
generic  titles  for  the  same  number  of  species — all  great  carrion- 
vultures,  obviously  belonging  to  a  single  family — I  only  do  so 
under  protest.  I  hold  that  such  ultra-refinement  of  definition 
is  not  only  unnecessary,  but  actually  prejudicial  to  the  general 
understanding  of  ornithology.] 

The  two  smaller  Ea.st-African  Vultures  are  clearly  Neo- 
phrons; but  the  more  abundant  by  far  of  the  two  differs  essen- 
tially from  the  well-known  Egyptian  Vulture  of  Europe  (A.  p)crc- 
nopterus)  in  that  its  tail  is  short  and  square,  instead  of  long  and 
cuneate ;  also  in  that  its  plumage  remains  dark  brown  through- 
out life  ;  whereas  in  the  other,  the  plumage — though  dark  during 
immaturity — becomes  pure  white  with  black  wing-points  when 
adult.  In  Africa,  the  square  or  cuneate  tail  will  always  serve  to 
distinguish  the  two  species,  old  or  young. 

4.  White    Egyptian    Vulture — Neophron  pcvcnoptcrus.      Com- 

paratively scarce,  though  least  so  in  mountain-regions. 
The  only   example  actually   handled — an   adult,  shot  at 


APPENDIX  319 

Baringo  in  August — showed  conspicuous  patches  of  rich 
bay,  with  black  punctuations,  upon  scapulars  and  tertials 
— features  never  observed  in  Spanish  specimens.  Face 
yellow.  '"'■ 

5.  Brown  Egyptian  Vulture — N.   monachns.     Very  abundant. 
Always  dark  brown  with  pink  gape  and  livid  blue  face. 
Tail    square,  as   above    described.     Attends    one's    camp 
everywhere,  and  roosts  in  crowds  in  the  trees  close  by. 
(In     my    South-African     note-book    occurs    this     remark : 
"  Among  hundreds  of  Neophrons,  never  an  adult  shows  up :  all 
are   brown,  and   their  tails  are  square — not  cuneate.     How  is 
this  ? "     The  answer  is  supplied  above.) 

Eagles 

Five  species  came  under  our  observation,  as  follows — 

1.  Crowned  Hawk-Eagle — Spizaetas  coronatus.     A  fierce   ami 

powerful  species,  as  mentioned  in  narrative  (p.  211).  Dis- 
tinguishable by  its  short  rounded  w'ings  and  broad  tail. 
Usually  seen  in  pairs — Athi,  the  Rift,  etc. 

2.  Black-crested  Hawk-Eagle — LophoaetAts  occiintalis.    In  colour 

very  dark,  but  showing  a  broad  patch  of  white  on  either 
wing,  most  conspicuous  when  seen  from  above.  The  long 
black  crest  is  also  visible  at  considerable  distance — see 
p.  212. 

3.  Bateleur  Eagle — Hclotarsus  ecaudatus.     A  striking  species 

of  powerful  sailing  flight,  the  wings  held  more  recurved 
than  in  any  other  eagle.  The  red  legs  can  also  be  dis- 
tinctly seen,  extended  backwards  and  projecting  slightly 
beyond  tlie  very  short  tail. 

4.  Tawny  Eagle — Aquila  rapax.    One  of  the  commonest  East- 

African  eagles ;  often  to  be  seen  perched  on  a  dead  tree 
close  outside  camp,  and  even,  occasionally,  joining  com- 
pany with  the  vultures  at  a  carrion-meal.  A  medium- 
sized  eagle,  entirely  tawny-chestnut  in  colour,  and  feathered 
to  the  toes.     Sketched  at  p.  130. 

5.  White-headed    Fish-Eagle — HaUaehis  vocifer.      Frequents 

wooded  riversides  and  the  shores  of  lakes,  where  it  sits  for 
hours  perched  on  a  tree,  at  intervals  uttering  a  series  of 
magnificent   piercing   cries.     It  also  gives  tongue   when 


320  ON   SAFAKI 

soaring.     One  of  a  j^air  stooped  at  a  pack  of  ducks  swim- 
ming on  Elmenteita,  but  did  not  pursue  when  they  rose. 

Kites,  Hawks,  etc. 

Black  Kite — Milvus  korscliun.  Abundant  during  winter,  but 
withdraws  by  mid- February.     Bill  horn-colour. 

Egyptian  Kite — M.  ccgyptius  (yellow-billed).  Equally  abund- 
ant, but  remains  throughout  the  year.  A  bold  camp- 
scavenger,  swooping  down  and  carrying  off  scraps  of  meat 
(or  anything  red)  from  the  midst  of  the  men. 

Black-winsed  Kite — Elanus  cceruleus.     Common  but  local. 

Marsh-Harrier — Circus  ranivoms.  Rare  ;  but  occurs  all  the  year. 
,,  „  C.  ceruginosus.     In  winter  only. 

Hen-Harrier — C.  cyaneus.  Common  in  winter  on  Athi,  but 
none  seen  there  in  summer. 

Montagu's  Harrier — C.  pygargus.  Ruwenzori  (Archer),  also  in 
B.  E.  Africa. 

Pallid  Harrier — C.  macrurus.     Plentiful  in  Torquel  (Jackson). 

Buzzards   of    several    kinds    were    observed,    but   none   of 
European  type.     Those  recorded  are — 
Steppe  Buzzard — Butco  descrtorum.     Ruwenzori  (Archer). 
Jackal  Buzzard — B.  jaJcal, 
Augur  Buzzard — B.  augur. 

Kestrels  of  various  sizes  abound.  My  Spanish  friend,  the 
Lesser  Kestrel  (Cerchneis  naumanni)  swarmed  in  winter  on  the 
koppies  and  crags  of  Lukenia,  Athi,  etc.  Four  species  have, 
I  believe,  been  recognised  in  B.E.  Africa. 

[Note. — A  striking  instance  of  the  marvels  of  bird-migration 
occurs  in  this  group.  One  species  of  Kestrel  (the  Eastern  Red- 
footed,  Cerchneis  arnurensis)  breeds  in  North  China  and  Japan, 
leaving  that  region  in  September.  Its  passage  through  India 
is  noticed  in  October — November.  But  it  spends  its  winter 
(that  is,  the  South-African  summer)  well  south  of  the  Zambesi. 
Thence  it  returns  to  China  in  the  following  spring.  Curiously, 
its  passage  has  not  hitherto  been  noticed  in  B.E.  Africa. 
That  may  arise  either  from  the  (natural)  scarcity  of  ornitho- 
logical observers,  or  possibly  because  the  birds  travel  direct 
across  the  Indian  Ocean.] 


APPENDIX  321 

Owls 

Spotted  Eagle-Owl — Biiho  maculosus.  A  medium-sized  horned 
Owl,  ash-grey  in  colour,  with  black  mottlings — closely 
resembling  the  grey  type  of  our  British  Wood-Owl  (Sj/rnium 
aluco),  but  quite  twice  as  large.  It  is  common  in  the 
rocky  ravines  and  bush-clad  kloofs  of  the  Athi,  and  hoots 
in  alarming  key  at  night,  though  some  of  those  unearthly 
shrieks  may  have  been  due  to  the  following  species — 

Giant  Eagle-Owl,  or  Verreaux's  Eagle-Owl  (B.  ladeus).  A  huge 
pale-grey  bird,  also  observed  on  the  Athi  on  two  occasions. 
We  noticed,  in  the  forests  near  Baringo,  a  horned  Eagle- 
Owl,  tawny  in  colour,  hunting  by  day,  and  apparently  of 
arboreal  habit. 

Marsh-Owl — Asio  ccqjensis.  This,  the  African  Short-eared  Owl, 
was  common  among  bush  at  Baringo  in  August ;  also 
among  the  reed-beds  of  the  Stony  Athi  in  winter  (January 
— February),  A  dark-coloured  Owl,  sleeping  away  the 
daylight  hours  gregariously  on  the  ground. 

Cape  Scop's  Owl — Sco2}s  capcnsis.  A  very  small  grey  horned 
Owl.     See  p.  213. 


Parrots 
One  expects  in  the  tropics  to  see  Monkeys  and  Parrots  at 
every  turn,  but  in  British  East  Africa  one  hardly  sees  either. 
Our  personal  acquaintance  with  Parrots  was  limited  to  observing 
a  few  on  wing  near  Mombasa  and  in  the  coastal  region,  and 
again  a  noisy  bronze-green  species  near  Baringo.  The  following 
six  species  have,  however,  been  recorded  in  British  East  Africa — 

Pceoccpha  lus  s  uahelicus. 

P.  masaicus. 

F.  fuscicapillus. 

P.  rufiventQ'is. 

P.  matschiei. 

Agapornis  personata. 

Kingfishers 
Striped    Kingfisher — Halcyon    chelicuti.      A    brown-grey   bird 

Y 


322  ON   SAFARI 

only  showing  blue  on  the  back.  As  often  seen  on  the  dry 
veld  as  by  riversides. 

Pied  Kingfisher — Cerylc  rudis.  A  lai'ge  and  conspicuous  bird, 
mottled  black  and  white,  with  an  occipital  tuft  and  a  dark 
bar  through  eye.  Observed  on  Athi,  Molo  and  other 
rivers,  sometimes  perched  on  a  dead  reed,  at  others 
hovering,  kestrel-like,  over  the  water. 

Giant  Kingfisher — C.  mcLvima.  A  handsome  black  species 
banded  with  rows  of  white  spots  and,  in  the  male,  a  warm 
ruddy  patch  on  the  breast.  Larger  than  the  last.  Ob- 
served at  Njemps,  but  rare.  More  common  on  Victoria 
Nyanza. 

Malachite  Kingfisher — Corythornis  cyanostigma.  Small,  bright 
azure.     Common  everywhere. 

ROLLEES 

Roller,  or  Blue  Jay — Coracias  garrulus.  A  migrant,  observed 
in  winter  frequenting  the  higher  land. 

Lilac-breasted  Roller — G.  caudatus.  These  long-tailed  Rollers 
were  common  in  the  lower  country  at  Simba,  Makindu, 
etc.,  in  March.     Resident,     Figured  at  p.  248. 

Bee-eaters 

Bee-eaters  abound ;  we  noticed  the  following,  besides  others 

that  we  did  not  know — 

Mero2os  persicus — Blue-cheeked  Bee-eater.  A  large  species, 
bright  green ;  and — 

M.  apiaster — the  European  species.  Curiously,  this  bird  breeds 
both  in  Spain  in  our  spring,  and  again  in  South  Africa  in 
our  autumn.  Whether  this  applies  to  individual  birds 
cannot,  of  course,  be  known.  The  notes  of  these  two 
species  appear  to  be  identical. 

M.  alMcolHs  (possibly).    )         j  Jackson  ) 

Melittophagus  allifrons.  / 

Hoopoes  ( Ujnqxi) 

The  European  species  {U.  epops)  is  rare,  but  was  observed 
during  winter  on  the  higher  ground,  and  once  (exceptionally) 


APPENDIX  323 

as  low  as  Simba  at  end  of  March.     It  migrates  northward  at 
that  date  to  breed. 

The  African  Hoopoe  {U.  africano)  is  abundant,  and  was 
also  observed  at  Simba  in  March,  and  at  various  other  points. 
It  frequents  open  bush,  and  is  distinguished  by  its  dark  wing 
(not  barred  with  white  as  in  U.  epops)  and  its  redder  body- 
colour.     Resident. 

Wood-Hoopoes  (Irrisor) 

These  are  forest-frequenting  birds,  without  crest,  blackish  in 
plumage,  with  glossy  metallic  lustre  of  deep  greens  and  purples, 
and  showing  only  a  single  white  bar  on  the  wings.  Their  tails 
are  lonsf  graduated  and  cuneate,  each  feather  having  a  sub- 
terminal  white  bar.  These  are  noisy  birds,  attracting  one's 
attention  by  a  harsh  discordant  chatter  within  the  bush,  and 
then,  on  being  disturbed,  flying  off  with  loud  outcries. 

At  Sultan  Hamud  I  watched  a  pair  climbing  like  Wood- 
peckers in  search  of  insects  on  rough  tree-trunks,  and  made  the 
rough  sketch  inserted  at  p.  243. 

HORNBILLS 

(Usuall}^  but  quite  wrongly,  called  "Toucans" — the  latter 

being  exclusively  a  South- American  family.) 

Great  Ground-Hornbill — Bucorax  caffer.  Only  found  in  dense 
forest,  or  about  the  margins  or  "  opens "  thereof.  Re- 
sembles a  turkey  as  it  struts  along  the  ground,  feeding 
on  small  reptiles,  insects  and  everything  that  crawls, 
and  with  great  red  wattles  pendent  from  its  bare  blue 
throat.  The  flight  appears  smooth  and  noiseless  as  that 
of  an  owl,  though  when  disturbed  close  at  hand  a  loud 
rustling  is  audible ;  it  is  gently  undulated  by  the  inter- 
mittent wing-beats,  the  broad  white  bands  on  the  wings  and 
the  immensely  long  tail  being  consj^icuous.  Always  wild 
and  watchful.     See  p.  197. 

In  the  Mau  forests  we  noticed  several  large  Hornbills,  which 
probably  included  (besides  the  above) — 

Trumpeter  Hornbill — Bycanistes  luccincdor  (p.  192). 
Crested  Hornbill — B.  cristatus  (p.  193). 


324  ON   SAFAEI 

Besides  the  larger  kinds,  there  were  also  at  Man  and  in  the 
Sotik,  as  well  as  all  over  the  wooded  districts  of  East  Africa. 
Hornbills  of  a  smaller  genus,  distinguished  as  Lophoceros,  some 
of  which  1  have  endeavoured  to  sketch  (see  jDp.  17,  199,  200, 
251).     These  included— 

Crowned  Hornbill — L.  mclanoleucus. 
Black-and-white  Hornbill — L.  fasciatus. 
Red-billed  Hornbill — L.  crythrorhynchv.s. 

All  the  hornbills,  great  and  small,  are  very  noisy  birds. 
Some  species  of  this  group,  Lophoceros,  have  the  curious  habit  of 
imjirisoning  the  female  while  she  is  sitting  on  her  eggs.  The 
nest  is  placed  in  a  hollow  tree,  the  entrance  to  which  the  male 
plasters  up  with  clay,  leaving  only  a  narrow  slit  through  which 
he  feeds  the  incubating  female. 


Nightjars 

Pennant-winged  Nightjar — Cosmetoniis  vexiUariiis.  Abund- 
ant in  bush-clad  ravines  and  on  wooded  river-banks, 
such  as  Athi.  Several  will  rise  close  by,  and  settle  again, 
often  squatting  down  on  bare  sand,  within  a  few  yards. 
The  long  streaming  plumes  or  "pennants"  (see  sketch, 
p.  211)  are  only  assumed  at  the  breeding  period — April. 

Racket-winged  Nightjar — Macrodipteryx  maci-odipterus.  In  this 
also  the  long,  tufted  plumes  are  only  acquired  at  the 
nesting-time.  The  bird  then,  when  flying,  gives  the 
impression,  in  the  dusk,  of  being  three  birds — a  big  one 
with  two  smaller  mobbing  it.  Baringo  is  one  locality  ; 
but  it  is  not  common. 

Salvadori's  Nightjar — Caprimulgusfrcnatus.  A  small  Nightjar, 
common  in  the  Mau  and  on  the  highlands,  but  replaced 
on  Athi  and  the  coast  by  the 

Mozambique  Nightjar — C.  fossei.  Abundant  from  Athi  to 
Mombasa,  and  audible  everywhere  after  sundown. 

Donaldson-Smith's  Nightjar — 0.  doiialdsoni.  A  small  species, 
very  noisy.  Common.  At  Baringo  I  found  a  nest  with 
two  eggs,  on  bare  ground,  on  August  29 — unusually 
late. 


APPENDIX  325 

Swifts 

Swifts  of  several  kinds — including  our  British  species  in 
winter — were  observed,  some  comparatively  small. 

CoLIES  (Colius) 

These  mouse-grey  birds  with  tufted  heads  and  very  long 
tails  are  numerous,  darting  about  in  packs  with  rapid  flight. 
Their  long  wings  and  tails  at  first  suggest  "  Parrakeets " ;  but 
on  aliofhtins,  the  Colies  are  seen  to  run  and  climb  on  trees  and 
move  in  the  style  of  Creepers  or  Nuthatches,  creeping  along 
boughs  or  up  and  down  vertical  stems  in  search  of  berries  or 
buds.  For  climbing  purposes,  their  toes  are  so  arranged  that 
all  four  can  be  directed  forwards,  and  are  furnished  with  sharp 
prehensile  claws.  When  ascending  a  sloping  branch  they 
appear  to  use  the  "knees"  also.     Figured  at  p.  65. 

Colies  breed  in  November,  the  nests  being  untidy  grass-built 
structures  like  those  of  Sparrows,  placed  in  bushes  or  low  trees, 
and  with  an  entrance  at  the  side. 

Cuckoos 

Solitary  Cuckoo — Cuculus  solitarius.     Njemps,  August. 

White-browed  Coucal — Ccntroims  suioereiliosiis. 

Purple-crowned  Lark-heeled  Coucal — C.  monaelius. 

These  two  are  reclusive  birds,  skulking  by  day  amid 
tliick  reed-beds  or  bush  and  seldom  seen.  They  are  largely 
of  nocturnal  habit,  and  very  noisy  at  night.  The  first- 
named  Coucal  has  an  extraordinary  bubbling  note  that 
resembles  water  gurslins  from  an  inverted  bottle,  and 
may  be  heard  all  night  at  Mombasa  (where  "  water-bottle 
bird "  is  one  name  for  it).  We  also  heard  it  far  up- 
country,  at  Makindu,  Baringo,  etc. 

Both  species  are  also  known  as  Bush-Cuckoos,  or 
Ground-Cuckoos.     Sketched  at  pp.  59,  109,  112. 

TOUEACOS 

Grey  Touraco,  or  Lourie — Schizorliis  concolor  (South-African). 
Purple-crested  Lourie — Gallircx  chloroclilamys. 
Purple-winged  Lourie — Turacv.s  hartlauhi. 


326 


ON   SAFARI 


These  are  the  "  Go-'way  bh-ds  "  of  South  Africa,  or 
Plaintain-eaters.  In  East  Africa  they  frequent  the  high- 
lying  forests,  as  Mau,  Sotik  and  the  Kikuyu  Forest,  and 
thorn-clad  plateaux  of  Laikipia.  Besides  its  ringing  cry, 
"  Go-'way,"  the  Grey  Lourie  has  also  a  cat-like  note, 
uttered  as  it  seemingly  tries  to  balance  on  a  bough, 
fluttering  its  short  wings  and  flirting  the  immense  tail. 

It  is  this  species  which,  as  described  in  Chap.  XXII, 
causes  infinite  annoyance  to  the  big-game  hunter  in 
South  Africa  by  giving  warning  of  danger  to  the  quarry. 


KING  Leopold's  touraco  {Gymnoschizorhis  leopoldi). 

King  Leopold's  Touraco  (Gvinnoschizorhis  Icojjokli),  hrought  from 
Ruwenzori  by  my  friend,  Mr.  Douglas  Carruthers,  is  here 
rudely  sketched.  Remarkable  for  its  scimitar-like  crest 
and  bare,  featherless  face.  Other  species  of  Touracos  are 
figured  at  pp.  31,  194,  271,  272. 


Barbets 

Woodpecker-like  birds,  though  they  do  not  climb,  a  score 
or  more  of  which  are  found  in  East  Africa.  They  have 
ringing  voices,  not  unmusical,  nest  in  hollow  trees,  and  a  typical 
Barbet  is  sketched  at  p.  Go. 


APPENDIX  327 

Honey-guides  {Indicator) 

Several  species  occur,  notably  Indicator  major,  and  /. 
variegatics,  the  Scaly-throated  Honey-guide,  more  particularly 
described  in  Chap.  XXII. 

Woodpeckers 

Many  species  observed,  large  and  small ;  but  (as  with  the 
Barbets)  I  had  no  opportunit}^  of  identifying  these. 
Thripias  schoensis  \ 

Mesopicus  spodocephalus  \  are  conspicuous  (F.  J.  Jackson). 
Dendropicus  lafrcsnayi  J 

Swallows 

Our  common  Chimney  Swallow  is  abundant  in  winter,  and 
its  "  mobilisation  "  in  February  for  the  northward  journey  has 
already  been  described  (p.  144).  Other  species,  unknown  to  me 
(particularly  a  small  kind  with  speckled  breast),  were  perform- 
ing a  similar  function  simultaneously. 

Another  species  aj^pears  in  March — all  white  beneath, 
flecked  with  grey  "  ticks,"  but  without  the  black  breast-band. 
This  is  Hirundo  pudla.  Its  crown  and  rump  are  chestnut, 
the  mantle  glossy  steel-blue.  This  appeared  to  be  only  one  of 
several  species  with  "  flecked  "  breasts. 

Flycatchers 

Spotted  Flycatcher — Muscicapa  grisola.  Though  not  actually 
observed  by  us,  is  recorded  from  Kibwezi,  on  the  Uganda 
railway,  as  early  as  September  24 ;  and  at  Teita  as  late 
as  April  6  {Ibis,  1901,  p.  87) ;  from  Tanganyika  {Ibis, 
1899,  p.  375),  and  occurs  in  winter  as  far  south  as  the 
Transvaal, 

In  a  letter  just  received  (June  1908),  Mr.  Jackson 
mentions  that  Spotted  Flycatchers  remained  in  his  garden 
at  Nairobi  this  year  up  to  the  middle  of  April. 

In  the  Mau  Forest  (see  p.  194)  we  observed  black-and- 
white  birds,  obviously  Flycatchers,  but  of  a  species  quite 
unknown  to   us. 


328  ON   SAFAEI 

BuLBULS  {Pycnonotus) 

The  ringing  flute-like  song  of  one  species  (P.  layarcU)  has 
ah-eady  been  mentioned  at  Baringo — siDecially  noticeable  to- 
wards night  (see  pp.  58  and  63).  Other  kinds  warble  all  day, 
a  rich  sweet  song,  audible  afar,  even  around  Mombasa, 

Babblers  [Crateropus) 

Thrush-like  birds  which  frequent  bush,  alighting  in  a  mass 
on  some  thorn  if  they  think  no  one  is  in  sight.     Otherwise 


EMix's  BABBLER  {Crciterojjus  emini,  ?  ). 

secretive,  more  often  heard  than  seen.  On  one's  approaching  to 
see  what  all  the  noise  is  about,  the  Babblers  sneak  off  quietly 
through  the  bush  ahead ;  most  difficult  to  see. 

The  annexed  rough  sketch  represents  one  of  the  Babblers — 
C.  emini. 

Thrushes  and  Warblers 

Wheatear — Saxicola  cenanthc.  Observed  by  us  both  at  Nairobi 
and  Elmenteita,  besides  being  recorded  from  Athi  and 
elsewhere,  during  the  winter  months,  the  earliest  date 
being  September  26  at  Njemps. 

Fantail- Warblers — Cisticola.  Abundant  on  the  marshy  flats 
around  Lake  Nakuru. 


APPENDIX  329 

Willow-Warbler — Phylloscopus  trochilus.  Many  records  in  winter. 
We  observed  it  ourselves  and  heard  it  in  half-song  in  the 
Mail  Forest  on  March  6  (see  p.  197).  Mr.  Jackson  records 
its  remaining  at  Nairobi  this  year  up  to  May  10. 

Sedge- Warbler — Acrocciihalvspliragmitis.  Observed  in  Ukamba 
in  January.  This  year  (1008)  remained  at  Nairobi  as  late 
as  May  23  (F.  J.  J.). 

Marsh-Warbler — A.  imlustris.  Also  recorded  in  January  from 
Ukamba. 

Whitethroat — Sylvia  curmca.  We  thought  we  observed  this  on 
Athi  in  January,  but,  as  Mr.  Jackson  was  doubtful,  had 
excluded  it.  He,  however,  writes  (June  1908)  :  "  I  think 
I  have  since  got  two  or  three  from  Kitui,  west  of  Donyo 
Sabuk." 

Another  of  our  little  British  songsters,  the  Garden- 
Warbler  (;S',  liortcnsis),  though  not  yet  actually  recorded 
from  Equatoria,^  goes,  in  fact,  far  further  south.  For  my 
friend  Mr.  Harold  Fry  writes  to  me  from  the  Transvaal  : 
"  There  are  always  two  or  three,  sometimes  more,  in  my 
garden  at  Bertrams — an  unobtrusive  little  bird,  not  given 
much  to  warbling  when  he  visits  us  here ;  but  with  a  fine 
taste  in  fruits — cherries,  apricots,  peaches,  grapes,  nothing 
comes  amiss.  But  he  is  not  above  taking  insects  too  ; 
and,  I  have  fancied,-  reveals  his  Northern  origin  by  con- 
tinuincf  to  hawk  after  these  even  in  a  drizzle  of  rain  that 
drives  most  of  our  native  birds  to  shelter." 

Mr.  Jackson  sends  me  the  following  most  interesting  note  : 
"Nairobi,  May  25,  1908. — Several  of  our  British  migrants  were 
remarkably  late  in  leaving  these  parts.  The  Spotted  Flycatcher 
remained  until  the  middle  of  April ;  the  Willow- Wai'bler  as  late 
as  May  10;  and  the  Sedge- Warbler  I  saw  on  May  23.  The 
Tree-Pipit  was  in  great  numbers  in  my  garden  up  to  May  4, 
but  all  disappeared  during  that  night,  which  was  very  wet  and 
stormy." 

Truly  the  above  are  remarkable  dates,  and  Mr.  Jackson  asks  : 
"  Did  they  know  you  were  having  Arctic  weather  in  April  at 
home  ? " 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  these  tiny  travellers   were  not   only 

1  Mr.  Jackson  writes  :  "I  have  sevei'al  from  the  Ravine." 


330  ON   SAFARI 

extremely  late  in  reacLing  England  this  year,  but  arrived  in 
markedly  smaller  numbers  than  I  ever  before  remember.  Thus 
the  Willow-Warblers  (and  Sand-Martins  also)  failed  to  appear 
in  Northumberland  till  May  1 — the  former  a  fortnight,  the 
latter  a  month,  overdue.  No  Spotted  Flycatchers  showed  up 
in  my  garden  at  Houxty  till  May  11;  while  Sedge-Warblers 
and  Tree-Pipits  came  together  four  days  later — all  long  past 
their  customary  dates.  The  paucity  of  their  numbers  this  year 
was  also  equally  marked.  The  diminution  in  each  of  the  four 
specific  cases  could  certainly  not  be  estimated  at  less  than  a  full 
half:  while  as  regards  others  of  our  summer- warblers,  especially 
Whinchats,  the  apparent  loss  mounted  up  to  quite  two-thirds  of 
their  normal  numbers. 

The  subject  is  more  fully  treated  in  my  Bird-life  of  the 
Borders  on  Moorland  and  Sea  (Second  Edition),  and  a  possible 
explanation  of  such  phenomena  Avill  be  found  suggested  at 
pp.  125  et  scq.  I  venture  to  hope  that  every  field-naturalist  will 
have  read  that  work — and  in  no  sense  of  paltry  profit  to  me, 
but  solely  for  his  own  benefit  and  enjoyment. 

Shrikes 

In   Europe  we  have  but   five  or  six  species,    while  Africa 

boasts  a  dozen  genera — a  few   of  which    may  be   mentioned 

here — 

Lanius.  An  overflow  from  Europe.  Our  British  Red-backed 
Shrike  (Z.  coUurio)  occurs  right  through  Africa  in  winter 
as  far  south  as  Gazaland  (inland  of  Delagoa  Bay),  and 
has  been  recorded  from  Ruwenzori  and  elsewhere  in 
British  East  Africa.  Mr.  Jackson  writes :  "  Very  plenti- 
ful in  Rift  Valley  in  March  and  early  April."  The 
Lesser  Grey  Shrike  (X.  minor)  also  visits  Africa  in 
winter ;  but  that  continent  only  possesses  one  Lanius  of 
its  own — Z.  mackinnoni. 

Laniarius.  An  exclusively  African  genus,  including  a  dozen  or 
more  species,  none  of  which  I  met  with. 

Bush-Shrikes — Dryoscopus.  Also  purely  African,  numbering 
about  twenty  species.  B.  nandensis,  one  of  the  many  new 
species  discovered  in  East  Africa  by  Mr.  Jackson,  is 
figured  at  p.  174,  from  the  plate  in  Ibis,  1901,  p.  41. 


APPENDIX  331 

Wood-Shrikes 

Helmet-Slirikes — Sigmodus.  Characterised  by  tufted  heads  and 
wattles  around  the  eye ;  woodland  birds  of  soft  floppy 
flight,  recalling  that  of  the  Siberian  Jay.  This,  again,  is  a 
purely  African  genus  of  half-a-dozen  species  (p.  252). 

Drongos — Dicrurijs,  of  which  the  fork-tailed  species,  D.  musicvs, 
is  figured  and  described  at  p.  18.^ 
In  spite  of  the  abundance  of  Shrikes,  I  never  chanced  to 

notice  their  "  shanables  "  in  East  Africa. 

Tits  (Paridce) 

These  also  form  a  numerous  group,  fourteen  species  being 
recognised  as  peculiar  to  the  African  Continent — thereby  break- 
ing through  the  rigid  bounds  of  "  Ethiopia  "  in  zoological 
geography. 

Tits  noticed  in  the  forests  of  the  Mau  were  dark  in  colour — 
almost  black.  This  Ave  attributed  to  their  gloomy  environment 
— almost  a  twilight  at  midday.  But  those  sombre  colours 
appear  to  be  more  or  less  characteristic  of  other  African 
Paridx  not  restricted  to  dense  forest. 

SUNBIRDS 

This  is  a  thoroughly  tropical — or  rather,  Ethiopian — group, 
comprising  80  to  100  species,  many  of  which  are  typical  of 
British  East  Africa.  Bedecked  in  gorgeous  hues — crimson  and 
purples,  greens  and  scarlet,  blues,  gold  and  yellow,  each  feather 
of  which  has  a  metallic  lustre — these  tiny  creatures  glance  like 
jewels  in  the  sunshine  as  they  dart  from  flower  to  flower,  alight- 
ing for  an  instant  to  pick  off  insects  and  aphides  with  curved, 
creeper-like  bills.  One  perches  above  a  bloom,  bending  forward 
to  a  perpendicular  position  to  explore  the  calyx  beneath  ;  while 
another  hangs,  back  downwards,  like  a  tit,  below  its  selected 
flower. 

Towards  the  end  of  July,  when  the  brilliancy  of  some  blooms 

^  Mr.  Ogilvie-Grant  tells  me  that  Dicrurus  should  properly  have  been 
placed  next  to  Lamprocolius  &t  p.  335. 


332  ON   SAFARI 

was  going  back,  I  noticed  a  single,  later-flowering  shrub  almost 
covered  with  Sunbirds  and  butterflies.     Sketched  at  p.  12. 
Sunbirds  appear  to  breed  in  April  and  May. 


Larks,  Buntings,  Pipits,  etc. 

These  are  in  strong  evidence,  over  eighty  species  of  Larks  and 
a  dozen  of  the  Bunting  family  being  recorded.  Both  Skylarks 
and  Crested  Larks  (or  their  tropical  equivalents)  abound,  and 
we  noticed  the  former  beginnincr  to  sinor  niuch  as  at  home, 
in  February.     This  was  during  heavy  rain. 

A  group  of  Ethiopian  Pipits  are  distinguished  as  "  Long- 
claws  "  {Macronyx),  one  species,  M.  crocciis,  being  figured  at 
p.  145.  Mr.  Jackson  writes  me  recently  :  "  In  spite  of  all  our 
troubles  I  have  managed  to  do  a  little  birds'-nesting  at  odd 
moments,  and  have  had  the  satisfaction  of  finding  here  five  nests 
with  eggs  of  the  beautiful  pink-breasted  and  pink-throated 
Pipit,  Macronyx  wintoni.  I  had  always  believed  it  to  be  a 
resident  which  bred  in  this  country,  and  it  is  a  great  satisfac- 
tion to  have  proved  the  fact  (see  Ihis,  January  1905).  Hitherto 
I  had  never  seen  it  south  of  Naivasha." 

Our  British  Tree-Pipit  reaches  the  equator  in  winter,  as 
already  mentioned  (pp.  145  and  210).  Also  observed  on  Mount 
Elgon  (8,000  It.),  February  14  (F.  J.  J.),  and  in  Toro,  Uganda, 
March  10  {Ihis,  1906,  p.  559);  while  this  year  Mr.  Jackson 
records  its  remaining  as  late  as  May  4  at  Nairobi.  Two  other 
species  are  common  on  open  downs — the  European  Red- 
throated  Pipit,  Anfhns  ccrvmvs,  and  A.  rufulus,  the  latter  breed- 
ing, while  the  former  migrates  northwards  (to  the  Arctic)  by  June. 

White    Wagtail — Motacilla    alba.    Eldama    Ravine,    February 

(Jackson). 
Yellow  Wagtail — M.  Jiava.     Common  from  November  to  March 

(Jackson). 
Grey  Wagtail — M.  inelanojje.     This  we  observed  ourselves  (and 

I  think  31.  flava  also)  at  Nairobi  in  January,  aud  again 

at   Lake   Elmenteita   in   February.      Recorded    also   on 

September  80  from  Mau  (8,000  ft). 


APPENDIX 


333 


Bush-Larks 

Fischer's  Bush-Lark  {Mirafra  fischeri)  is  the  thick-set,  ruddy- 
brown  bird,  with  short  tail  and  short  rounded  wings,  that 
makes  the  extraordinary  vibrating  noise  already  described 
at  p.  2-19.  This  was  in  thin  bush-country  at  Sirnba,  in 
March ;  but  in  its  breeding-season  in  November,  Commander 
Lynes,  R.N.,  tells  me  he  heard  and  noticed  it  soaring  quite 
300  ft.  in  air  with  undulating  flight,  like  that  of  a  snipe 
when  "drumming" — but  with  this  difference,  that  the 
vibrant  rattle  was  only  produced  when  on  the  up-grade, 
whereas  snipe  produce  it  only  when  dropping  earthwards. 
Even  at  that  great  height  the  rattle  was  clearly  audible  ; 
indeed,  at  half-a-mile  it  sounded  as  distinct  as  when  the 
bird  was  close  by.  The  annexed  diagram  shows  the  line 
of  flight. 


Starting  from  the  ground  at  A,  the  bird  mounts  quickly  to  B. 

B  to  C — a  few  preliminary  wing-beats. 

C  to  D— the  "  clapi^er "  sound  is  produced.  At  D  closes  wings  and 
drops  to  E. 

E  to  F — preliminary  wing-beats  repeated. 

F  to  G — "  clapper  "  repeated — and  so  on. 

Finally,  Mirafra  descends  to  half-way  by  a  series  of  steep  down-grades, 
and  completes  remainder  of  descent  to  ground  or  bush  by  an  almost 
vertical  drop  of  great  rapidity. 

Duration  of  "clapper,"  three  seconds  ;  of  whole  performance,  three  to 
five  minutes. 

Viewed  from  below,  the  outline  of  the  bird  on  the  wing  resembles  that 
of  a  AVood-Lark,  with  rather  large  rounded  wings,  the  inner  secondaries 
well  clear  of  the  body — thus  allowing  space  for  the  requisite  movement  of 
the  wing  over  so  large  an  arc  (180°)  which  produces  the  sound  {Lynes). 


334 


ON   SAFAEI 


Athi  Bush-Lark — M.  atlii.  This  frequents  more  open  country 
than  the  last,  induding  the  open  grassy  plains,  where  I 
found  a  nest  containing  a  single  young  bird  on  quite  bare 
ground  on  February  4,  the  owner  showing  rufous-brown 
wings  as  she  rose  (p.  214).  We  also  found  it  nesting  at 
Elmenteita  in  September. 

Large  Buntings  Avith  bright  yellow  breasts,  and  various 
Serin-like  birds,  are  conspicuous,  the  latter  specially  numerous  at 
Ehiienteita  and  Nakuru.^ 


Weaver-Birds 

Africa  counts  some  250  species, 
divided  into  62  genera,  all  more  or  less 
related  to  the  Finches. 

Over  the  whole  country  one  sees 
their  nests ;  often  every  branch  of  a  tree 
will  be  bent  down  with  scores  of  pendent 
grass-built  structures,  separate  or  semi- 
detached. Favourite  sites  are  palmites 
and  forest-trees  that  fringe  river-banks, 
the  lower  nests  almost  dipping  to  the 
surface  as  branches  sway  in  a  breeze. 
Even  lowly  bushes,  where  they  overhang 
water,  are  occupied.  The  eggs,,  like  the 
birds,  are  sparrow-like.  At  Baringo, 
nests  contained  both  eggs  and  young  in  August. 

The  Social  Weavers  {Philxterus)  build  nests  which  can  only 
1)6  described  as  confluent,  joined  together  by  the  hundred  under 
a  common  roof — see  sketch  at  p.  58.  BeimUicaines  the  French 
happily  term  these  little  architects.  Another  group  {Hyphan- 
,tornis)  weave  their  nests  separately  on  to  tall  reeds  growing  in 
water,  as  shown  at  p.  250.     Other  forms  are  figured  at  p.  67. 

Weaver-birds  of  one  genus  or  another  nested  alike  at 
Mombasa  and  in  every  wooded  region  that  we  visited — up  to 
the  Sotik. 

At  Mombasa  one  of  the  common  species  is  Bojer's  Golden 

1  These,  I  find,  are  Canaries,  of  which  genus  some  twenty-five  to  thirty 
.species  are  recognised  in  Africa. 


A    WEAVER. 


APPENDIX  335 

Weaver  {XantliopMlus  hojcri).  This  breeds  in  November,  the 
grass-built  nest  being  compacted  with  fibrous  strips  of  banana 
leaf  and  placed  in  the  outer  sprays  of  low  trees — especially  the 
Aleppo-like  pine. 

One  striking  species  has  the  face  and  throat  crimson, 
narrowly  margined  with  black,  and  set  off  by  white  on  shoulders 
and  breast,  the  upper  parts  being  dark.  Several  other  weavers 
are  dark-headed,  with  lighter  bodies  in  various  colours. 

A  brightly-plumaged  group  are  the  Bishop-birds  {Pyrome- 
hc/ia),  scarlet  and  black  being  notable  elements  in  their  colour - 
scheme — figured  at  pp.  242,  249 ;  while  an  analogous  section  is 
formed  by  the  Waxbills  {Estrilda). 

At  Simba  in  March  we  observed  the  males  of  Hyphantornis 
suhaureus  spin  up  vertically  in  erotic  flight,  displaying  their 
golden  plumage — a  habit  resembling  that  of  Mirafra  fischeri, 
above  described,  but  in  this  case  without  the  accompaniment 
of  a  "vibrant"  rattle. 

Weaver-birds  are  not  all  characterised  by  brilliancy  of 
colour,  for  the  Social  Weavers  (Philcvtcrus)  boast  not  one  feather 
that  can  catch  the  eye. 

The  only  other  species  we  will  mention  is  the  King-Whydah 
(Chera  delamerei),  whose  extraordinary  development  of  tail  (in 
the  males)  has  already  been  figured  at  p.  .50.  This  bird  is  found 
only  upon  the  high  veld,  and  is  said,  like  the  Cuckoo,  to  possess 
parasitic  habits  in  the  breeding-time. 

(Mr.  Jackson  writes :  "  This  I  believe  to  be  incorrect.") 

At  p.  185  is  a  sketch  of  another  Whydah-Finch — Fenthetna 
ardens — the  male  of  which  is  jet  black  with  flame-red  cror^et. 


Orioles 

Golden  Orioles — Oriolus — (I  believe  of  two  species)  were  noted 
in  the  Rift  in  August,  on  the  Athi  iu  September,  and  at 
Simba  in  March. 


Starlings 

Glossy    Starlings — Lamprocolius.     These  are  conspicuous  birds 
in  all   wooded  districts,  sometimes  attending  our  camps 


33G  ON   SAFARI 

to  pick  up  stray  grains  of  rice.  But  they  do  so  here  in 
a  half-nervous  way,  and  have  not  yet  acquired  that 
familiarity  with  man  which  they  exhibit  in  the  South. 

Glossy  Starlings  nest  in  hollow  trees  exactly  as  our 
starlings  do  at  home. 

Wondrous  assemblages  of  these  birds,  together  with 
Rollers,  Bee-eaters  and  Shrikes,  Kites  and  Kestrels — 
indeed,  the  whole  of  the  insectivorous  tribes — may  be  seen 
gathered  together  at  every  veld-fire  when  the  natives  are 
burninsf-off  the  dead  herbage.  Feathered  crowds  dart 
hither  and  thither  amid  smoke  and  flame  :  while  the 
luckless  locusts  and  grasshoppers  are  literally  hemmed  in 
between  fire  and  sword.  For  those  few  that  escape — mostly 
crif)pled  and  singed — forthwith  find  themselves  confronted 
by  an  army  of  Storks  and  Cranes  sedately  advancing 
in  rear  of  the  flames  so  soon  as  the  burning  embers  per- 
mit. Altogether,  a  veld-fire  affords  an  interesting  episode 
in  the  economy  of  African  bird-life. 

Crows 

African  Rook — Heterocorax  capensis.     Observed  on  high  ground. 

White-necked  Raven — Corvultur  alMcoUis.  At  Voi,  several  of 
these  handsome  birds,  as  big  as  European  Ravens  and 
with  huge  beaks,  scavenged  quite  fearlessly  about  our 
camp. 

White-breasted  Crow — Corvus  sccqoulahcs.     Common. 


Note. — Crude  and  incomprehensive  as  it  necessarily  is,  this  List 
comprises  upwards  of  sixty  species  of  British  birds,  including  nearly  a 
score  of  our  smallest  and  most  delicate  summer-migrants. 


INDEX 


Aard-vaark,  59,  60,  259-60 

Aard-wolf,  113,  260 

Aggregations,  great,   of  game,   14- 

15,  129,  223-4 
Aggregations,  great,  of  waterfowl, 

37,  137 
Alabanyata  River,  48,  50,  152,  181 
Alertness  of  game,  292  et  seq. 
Antelope,  Hunter's,  289 

,  Roan,  290 

,  Sable,  290-1 

Ants,  59,  66,  258 

Aoul(0,  126-7,  129 

Askaris,  111 

Athi  Plains,  Chaps.  XVII..  XYIII., 

XIX. 
Avocet,  310 

Babblers,  251,  328 

Baboon,  10,  59,  136 

Baden-Powell,  Genl.,  181-2 

Bamboo-forest,  191 

Barbet,  58,  64,  196,  251,  326 

Bee- eaters,  58,  250,  322 

Beetles,  213 

Benighted,  76,  154 

Bird-life,  15-16,  37,  58,  64,  137-8, 

241,  248  et  seq. 
Bishop- birds,  249,  335 
Bittern,  313 
Bongo,  186,  192,  287-8 
Bracken,  189 
British  brrds  on  Ecjuator,  145,  197, 

210,  327,  328-9-30,  332,  336 
Buffiilo,  152,  153,  Chap.  XYI.,  257 
Bulbul,  58,  63,  328 
Bush-buck,  34,  192,  195 
Bu.sh-cuckoo,  16,  58,  112,  251,  325 
Bush-lark,  214,  249,  333-4 
Bush -pig,  106 
Bush-shrike,  64,  194,  331 
Bustard,  Bush-,  50,  312 

,  Kori,  15,  76,  106,  311 

Buzzard,  59,  320 


Camp-life,  Chap.  X. 

Canary,  334  (note) 

Caracal,  33 

Caterpillars,  venomous,  255 

Chanler's  Reedbuck,  10, 135-6, 183, 

210 
Cheetah,  28 
Civet,  261-2 

Cobra,  Hooded,  228-9,  281 
Coke's  Hartebeest,  201  et  seq.,  230 

et  seq. ,  253 
Coly,  64,  251,  275,  325 
Coot,  Crested,  307 
Cormorants,  219,  317 
Coucal,  16,  58,  112,  251,  325 
Courser,  214,  310 
Crakes,  307 
Crane,  Crowaied,  15,  17,  224,  312 

,  Great  Wattled,  37,  312 

Crows,  336 

Crocodile,  34,  62,  219,  220 
Cuckoos,  325.     {See  also  Coucal) 
Curlew,  308 

Dace,  221 

Danger,  278-9 

Darter,  37,  219,  317 

Deaths  among  Safari,  149-50,  236 

Development  of  B.E.A.,  133, 173-4 

183-5,  187-8 
Dikdik,   30,  34,  99-101,  136,  210, 

256 
Dotterel,  Asiatic,  213 
Doves,  58-9,  112,  307 
Drongo,  18,  251,  331 
Duck.s,  17,  137,  141,  315 
Duiker,  30,  34,  106,  210 
Dunlin,  213 

Eagle,  Bateleur,  59,  130,  197,  224 
,    Black-crested    Hawk-,    212, 

319 
,  Crowned  Hawk-,  211-12,  224, 

319 


337 


338 


INDEX 


Eagle,  Tawny,  130,  319 

,  White-headed,    16,    63,    130, 

319 
Eagle-owl,  58,  211,  320 
Eburu,  10,  131 
Egret,  36,  64,  275,  313 
Eland,   14,   35,   57,   77-8,    94,   102 

et  seq.,  122,  129,  168  et  seq.,  252, 

256 
Electric  flash-lights  in  heavens,  181, 

222 
Elephant,     54,     Chap.     VI.,     128, 

Chap.  XIII. 
Enderit  River,  17,  18  et  t>eq. 

Ferns,  191 

Fever,  malarial,  5-6,   7,   128,   150, 

151,  153,  300 
Finfoot,  Peter's,  307-8 
Fireflies,  241 

Flamingo,  37-8,  138,  148,  316 
Flies,  plagues  of,  57,  59,  255 
Florican,  50,  312 
Fly-catchers  (unknown),  194,  327 
Francolin,   16,   80,    112,    208,    247, 

252,  304-5 
Frogs,  81,  181 

Game  Reserves  (East  Africa),  207, 

298  et  seq. 
Game  Reserves  (Transvaal),  5 
Game-traps  (Native),  256 
Garganey,  137,  316 
Gazelle,  Grant's,  14,  25-6,  85,  129 

,  Peter's,  85-6,  87 

,  Thompson's,  15,  126,  135,  178 

(note),  223 
Genet,  247,  262 
Geese,  Egyptian,  16,  50,  129,  315 

,  Pigmy,  315 

,  Spurwing,  51,  137,  315 

Gerenuk,  289 

Giraff^e,  32,  78,  86,  223-4,  241,  252 

Glossy  Ibis.     (See  Ibis) 

Glossy  Starling,  64,  275,  335-6 

Gnu,    White-bearded,  201   et   seq., 

208,  217,  226,  228  et  seq. 
Goliath    Heron,    37-8,    138,    141, 

313 
Grant's  Gazelle,  14, 25-6, 85  (specific 

note),  129 
"Grass  Antelopes,"  30,  34 
Grebe,  37,  138,  308 
Greensliank,  138,  141,  308 
Guereza  Monkey,  195 


Guinea-fowl,  16,  60,  80,  112,  128, 

305-6 
Gulls,  37 

Hammer-head,  219,  313 
Haunington,  Lake,  57 
Hare,  "Jumping,"  16 
Harrier,  Hen-,  213,  320 

Marsh-,  320 

others,  320 

Hartebeest,   Coke's,   201-2  et  seq., 

230  et  seq.,  253 

,  Jackson's,  51-3, 99, 181-2,  293 

,  Neumann's,  19,    35-6,  121  et 

seq.,  181-2 
Hedgehog,  79 
Helmet-shrike,  252,  330 
Herons,  37,  64,  219,  313 

,  Buft-backed,  51,  210,  275,  313 

,  Goliath,  37-8,  138,  141,  313 

Hippopotamus,  26,  35,   38,  137  et 

seq.,  USetseq.,  219,  221 
Honey-guide,  267  et  seq.,  327 
Hoopoe,  247-8,  322 
Hornbills,  16,  58, 192-3-4,  197,  251, 

323-4 
Hunter's  Antelope,  289 
Hunting-dog,  33,  176-7,  291 
Hyena,  Spotted,  15,  97,  112,  149- 

50,  210,  225 

,  Strijjed,  124-5 

Ilylochiems,  77-9,  186,  287 
Hyrax,  214,  224 

Ibis,  37,  138,  141,  314 

,  Wood-,  15,  219,  314 

Iguanas,  283 

Impala,  25,  32,  86,  97-8,  129 

Instinct,  animal-,  30-1,  83-4,   137, 

232 
Ivory,  162-3,  165 

Jabiru,  37,  39,  138,  314 

Jacana,  64,  311 

Jackal,  Black-backed,  137 

Common,  20,   146,   137,   214, 

226 
Jackson's    Hartebeest,    51-3,    99, 

181-2,  293 

Kenya,  Mount,  241 
Kestrel,  224,  320 
Kilimanjaro,  241 
Kingfisher,  58,  64,  250,  321-2 
Kishobo,  187 


INDEX 


339 


Kites,  213,  320 
Klipspringer,  12,  177 
Koodoo,  Greater,  57,  93,  291 
,  Lesser,  237,  256,  292 

Larks,    50,    144-5,   214,   249,   332, 

333 
Laziness  of  Natives — Njemps,  71 
Leopard,  27-8,  36,  135,  177 
Lion,  26,  33,  Chap.  IV.,  48,  131, 

172-3,  207,  208  et  seq.,  238  et  seq., 

245-6,  293 
Lizard,  213 
Locusts,  99 
Lukenia,  214,  225 
Lynx,  33,  54 

Makindu,  252,  300 

MaUard,  African,   137,  141,  146-7, 

315 
Mambas,  281-2 
Marabou,  15,  99,  314 
Marsli-owl,  79,  320 
Masai,  13,  26,  37,  48,  49,  71,  108, 

128,  131,  152,  174 
Meningai,  Crater,  183 
Migration,  big  game,  74,  105,  122, 

129  (note),  134,  181,  217,  237 
Migration,  bird-,  144-5,  320,  329-30 
Millipedes,  196,  213 
Mongoose,  33,  113,  262 
INIonitors,  283 
Monkey,  18,  241 

;  Guereza,  195 

Mosquito,  59,  255 
Music,  Native,  56,  117-8 
Mutiny  in  Safari,  236,  286 

Neapara,  111,  119,  284-5 
Neophron,  19,  318-9 
Neumann,  Arthur,  81 
Neumann's   Harteljeest,   19,   35-6, 

121  fit  srq.,  181-2 
Nightjar,   90,    112,    197,    210,   219, 

324 
Njenips,  62-3  et  seq. 

Oribi,  33,  165,  177 

Orioles,  Golden,  250,  335 

Oryx  beisa,  79,  81  et  seq.,  97,  237 

Callotis,  237,  241,  246-7,  256 

Ostrich,  15,  50-1,  53,  141,  165-6, 

201-2 
Otocyon,  113 
Owl,  Eagle-,  58,  211,  320 


Owl,  Marsh-,  79,  320 

,  Scops,  213,  320 

Ox-peckers.     {See  Tick-birds) 

Parrots,  18,  64,  321 

Pelicans,    37,    50,    138,    148,    317, 

208 
Peter's  Gazelle,  85-6,  87 
Pigeons,  wild,  194,  248,  306 
Pintail,  137,  141,  316 
Plague  (in  Nairobi),  236 
Plovers,  64,  138,  178,  275,  308 

,  Ringed,  213,  308 

,  Spurwing,  16,  64,  138,  308 

,  Stone,  311 

Pochard,  African,  137,  316 

,  Maccoa,  137,  316 

Porcupine,  210,  261 
Pratincole,  213,  310-11 
Protective   coloration,   10,  32,  220 

(croc.) 
Protection    of     big    game,    Chajj. 

XXV.,  p.  295 
Puff-adder,  152,  281,  282 
Python,  281,  282-3 

Quail,  16,  80,  247,  305 

Quagga,  20 

Rail,  64,  307 

Rutel,  113,  263 

Raven,  White-necked,  50,  336 

Reedbuck,    Chanler's,    10,    135-6, 

183,  210 

,  Conmion,  56 

,  East- African     Bohor,     55-6, 

125,  177 
-,  Rhooi,  10 


Rhinoceros,  Chap.  VIII.,  138  et 
seq.,  154,  169  et  seq.,  177  et  seq., 
242  et  seq. 

Rift  Valley,  Chaps.  II.,  III. 

Roan  Antelope,  290 

Rock-sparrow,  60 

Roller,  247-8,  275,  322 

Ruff,  141,  308 

Sal)le  Antelope,  290-1 
Saddle-bill.     {See  Jabiru) 
Sand-grouse,  306 
Sandpipers,  37,  64,  141,  308 

,  Green,  141,  308 

Scorpion,  283 

Secretary-bird,  214,  235-5,  317 

Shoveler,  137,  141,  146,  316 


340 


INDEX 


Shrikes,  64,  194,  251,  252,  272  et 

seq.,  330-1 
Situtunga,  288-9 
Snakes,  228,  280  ef  seq. 
Snipes,  208,  310 

,  Solitary,  146,  310 

Somali  Hunters,  227 
Sotik,  188,  191,  195-6,  199 
Spurfowl,  247,  252,  304 
Squirrel,  Ground-,  33,  257 
Stalking  problems,  28-9,  105,  134 
Steinbuck,   30,  34,   106,   165,   210, 

253 
Stilts,  141,  146,  308-9 
Storks,  Saclclle-billed,  37,  39,  138, 

314 

,  (various),  37,  213,  314 

Suk,  101 

Sultan  Hamud,  252  et  seq. 

Sunbirds,  16,  250-1,  331 

Swahili,    8,    42,    108,    115    (note), 

1  1  ^— ft 

Swallows,  144,  210,  327 
Swifts,  325 

Teal,  137 

• Hottentot,  316 

Thompson's  Gazelle,  15,  126,   135, 

178  (note),  223 
Thomson,  Joseph,  63,  73 
Tick-birds,  274-5 
Ticks,  235,  245,  275 
Tiger-cat,  24,  33 
Tits,  194,  331 
Topi,  289-90 
Tortoises,  Land-,  220 
Touraco,  16,  194,  271-2,  325-6 
Transvaal,  big  game  of,  2 
. ,  incidents  in,  127,  233,  290-1, 

282-3,  306 
Tree-pipit,  145,  210,  329,  332 
Tsetse-tly,  7,  252,  284,  300-1 
Turtles,  Water-,  220 


Uganda  railway,  3,  6,  9,  186,  201, 
226,  238 

Veld-fires,  336 

Venison,  antelope,  116-17 

Voi,  256 

Vultures,  19-20,  120,  130,  318 

Wading-birds,  308 
Wagtails  (yellow  and  grey),  210,  332 
Wait-a-bit  thorn,  235-6 
Wandorobo,  101,  107,  116 

Sotik,  195-6,  199 

Wart-hog,  30, 127-8, 134, 182-3, 226 
Waterbuck,  Common,  204,  217,  241 
,  Sing-sing  (defassa),  21-4,  51, 

63,  106,  175  et  seq. 
Waterfowl,  variety  of,  37,  137 
Water-hen,  307 
Waxbills,  335 

Weather,  76,  112-13,  221-2 
Weaver-finch,  58,  66,  219,  249-50, 

334-5 
Whale-bill  Stork,  37,  313 
Wheatear,  145,  210,  328 
Whimbrel,  308 
White-eyes  {Zosterfqys),  64 
Whydah-finch,  50,  335 
Wildebeest.     (See  Gnu) 
Willow-wren,  197,  329 
Wood-hoopoe,  242,  248,  323 
Wood-ibis,  15,  219 
Woodpeckers,  64,  196,  327 

Xantho2)hilus  hojeri,  249,  335 

Ya-Nal)anda,  57,  102,  293 
Yellow-bill  {see  Mallard) 

Zambesi,  3 

Zebra,  19-20,  32,  107,  226,  253-4, 

293 
Zoster  ops,  64 


THE   END 


Richard  Clay  %  Sons,  Liiniled,  London  and  Uunyay. 


BY    THE    SAME    AUTHOR 

Medium   ^vo,  472  2^P;  «'^'^^^  Map,   26  Fidl-imge  and  nume7'0us 
Text  Illustrations.     Price  14s.  net. 

BIRD-LIFE   OF   THE   BORDERS 
ON  MOORLAND  AND  SEA 

WITH  FAUNAL  NOTES  EXTENDING  OVER  FORTY  YEARS 

BY 

ABEL   CHAPMAN,   RZ.S. 

Member  of  the  British  Oriiith.o!o{iists'   Union 

AUTHOR   OF    "the   ART   OF   WILDFOWLING,"    "WILD    NORWAY" 
AND    "wild   SPAIN  " 

(The  last  jointlj-  with  Waltkr  J.  Buck,  British  Vice-Consul  at  Jerez) 


(PUBLISHED  BY  GURNEY  &  JACKSON,  LONDON) 


This  work  was  published  in  1889,  and  having  for  several  yeai's 
past  been  very  scarce,  a  new  edition  has  been  called  for.  Though 
nominally  a  second  edition  it  is  in  effect  an  entirely  new  work,  re- 
written upon  twenty  years'  further  observation  and  study.  The 
field  of  obsei'vation  includes  the  whole  wild  range  of  "Cheviots' 
mountains  lone,"  with  their  subsidiary  foot-hills  lying  along  both  the 
English  and  Scottish  sides  of  the  Border — say,  1,000  square  miles  of 
mountain  and  moor. 

The  subjects  treated  ai-e  not  confined  to  bird-life.  The  whole 
fauna — wild  beasts  and  birds,  fishes  and  reptiles — of  one  of  the 
widest  and  wildest  virgin  solitudes  remaining  in  this  country  are 
portrayed  in  their  daily  life  throughout  the  year  by  one  who  is  no 
mere  dry-bones  naturalist,  but  who  sees  and  appreciates  the  whole 
beauty  of  wild  Nature  with  the  trained  eye  of  hunter,  angler  and 
wildfowler,  and  who  writes,  moreover,  with  deep  love  of  his  subject 
and  the  practical  experience  of  a  lifetime. 

The  second  section  treats  of  the  bird-life  (chiefly  wildfowl)  of  the 
Northern  sea-board ;  and  being  founded  on  long  years  of  solid  ex- 
perience in  wildfowling  afloat,  foiTiis,  as  herein  revised,  as  complete  a 


delineation  of  the  lives  of  these  wild  and  scarce-known  creatures  as 
any  one  man  may  hope  to  produce. 

The  system  of  punt-gunning,  with  its  moments  of  intense  excite- 
ment, and  its  dangers  by  wind  and  wave,  both  by  day  and  night,  fill 
chapters  that  "  I'ead  like  romance." 

The  illustrations  comprise  sepia-drawings  and  pen-and-ink 
sketches  by  the  Author,  and  are  from  life. 

The  book  is  addressed  not  so  much  to  ornithologists  (though 
they  may  glean  stray  grains  therein)  as  to  the  average  reader  who 
possesses  some  love  for  the  "  out-bye "  country  and  its  bird-life  in 
their  wilder  aspects. 


FROM  PRESS  NOTICES  OF  FIRST  EDITION  (1S89) 

"  We  have  a  book  on  birds  in  their  haunts  by  a  writer  who  is 
thoroughly  master  of  his  subject — one  who  has  plenty  to  say,  and 
who  also  knows  how  to  place  his  experiences  vividly  before  the 
reader.  The  portions  devoted  to  the  Cheviots  and  the  moorlands 
recall  the  scent  of  the  heather,  while  the  narrative  of  adventures  by 
day  and  by  night  in  a  gunning-punt  along  the  '  slakes '  off  Holy 
Island  is  pervaded  by  the  keen  salt  breezes  from  the  North  Sea.  .  .  . 
The  haunts  and  habits  of  wildfowl  by  day  and  night  have  never 
before  been  so  clearly  pointed  out  in  any  work  with  which  we  are 
acquainted." — Athennium. 

"  One  of  the  pleasantest  books  conceivable.  .  .  .  Every  lover  of 
a  country  life  will  delight  in  his  vivid  sketches  of  sporting  experi- 
ence and  wild  life  on  the  moors.  .  .  .  The  author's  enthusiasm  is 
something  irresistible.  Even  the  drawbacks  of  that  '  waiting-game,' 
wildfowling,  appear  as  of  no  weight  when  estimating  the  glories  of 
the  sport  as  set  forth  in  the  admirable  chapters  on  '  Wildfowl  of  the 
North-East  Coast,'  '  Midniglit  on  the  Oozes,'  'Wildfowl  and  the 
Weather,'  and  so  forth." — Saturday  Revieii). 

"  An  invigorating  out-of-door  air  pervades  this  book,  and  a  happy 
directness  of  description.  ...  In  sporting  experience,  so  far  as 
concerns  the  north-east  coast,  Mr.  Chapman  stands  in  the  front 
I'ank,  and  discourses  of  it  with  an  authority  beyond  controversy  or 
challenge." — Land  and  Water. 

"  Will  enchant  all  who  are  fond  of  birds.  Sympathy  with  all 
living  creatures,  careful  observation  with  cautious  deductions,  and 
strong  love  for  the  bleak  moors  and  wild  scenery  of  the  Cheviots — 
such  are  the  characteristics  of  this  most  interesting  book.  .  .  .  The 
illustrations  add  a  great  charm  to  a  book  i^edolent  of  wild  life  and 
careful  observation." — Academy. 


FROM  PRESS  NOTICES  OF  SECOND  EDITION  (1907) 

"  Of  the  many  admirable  books  recently  written  on  British 
birds,  Mr.  Abel  Chapman's  'Bird-Life  of  the  Borders'  is  un- 
doubtedly one  of  the  best,  and  is  destined,  in  all  probability,  to  the 
same  kind  of  immortality  as  that  enjoyed  by  the  famous  '  Natural 
History  of  Selborne.'  To  have  watched  the  birds  of  one  district 
for  forty  years,  and  to  have  kept  careful  records  of  all  the  observa- 
tions made  during  that  period,  is  no  small  achievement,  yet  the  feat 
has  been  performed  by  Mr.  Chapman ;  and  he  has  given  us  the 
results  of  his  activity  in  an  exceedingly  valuable  and  interesting 
book.  ...  A  short  notice  can  give  no  adequate  idea  of  the  varied 
interest  of  this  work,  which  is  one  of  quite  exceptional  worth,  and 
may  be  heartily  recommended." — Morning  Post. 

"  Observed  at  Houxty. — Mr.  Abel  Chapman,  whose  '  Wild 
Norway,'  '  Wild  Spain,'  etc.,  are  well  known,  has  his  English  home 
in  a  remarkably  interesting  territory,  and  one  not  nearly  so  often 
visited  as  its  natural  attractiveness  would  warrant.  .  .  .  Houxty 
is  beyond  doubt  of  great  importance  as  a  point  for  the  observation 
of  bird-migrations,  and  we  are  fortunate  in  having  so  good  an 
observer  of  that  and  the  whole  Border  region  which  Mr.  Chapman 
knows  so  well." — Daily  News. 

"Amidst  the  flood  of  valueless  books  about  birds  that  are 
published,  it  is  pleasant  to  see  a  new  edition,  in  part  rewritten,  of 
a  work  of  real  merit.  Mr.  Abel  Chapman  has  now  over  forty  years 
of  notes  to  draw  upon,  and  he  has  taken  great  care  in  revising  a 
work  that  bids  fair  to  become  classic.  It  is  delightful  reading,  and 
describes  the  wild  life  of  Northumbria  to  perfection.  Migration, 
Shooting,  Fishing,  Wildfowling,  and  the  habits  of  birds,  are  written 
of  with  an  intimate  knowledge  that  few  can  hope  to  acquire." — 
Sj^ectator. 

"  Mr.  Abel  Chapman  has  taken  a  very  wide  stretch  of  country 
for  his  background  on  which  with  a  master-hand  he  has  sketched  in 
and  painted  bird-life  in  all  its  wilder  aspects.  The  author  is  not 
only  a  good  writer,  but  a  true  sportsman  and  an  observant 
naturalist,  three  qualities  rarely  found  united  in  the  same  person. 
.  .  .  We  are  indebted  to  Mr.  Chapman  for  the  years  of  research 
and  observation  he  has  spent  on  the  Bordefs  in  noting  every  detail 
of  bird-life  as  recorded  in  this  second  edition  of  one  of  the  most 
charming  volumes  that  can  be  found  in  the  library  of  a  sportsman." 
— County  Gentleman  and  Land  and  Water. 

"  Reveals  on  eveiy  page  the  author's  intense  love  and  apprecia- 
tion of  his  subject.  .  .  ,  Far  more  interesting  reading  than  the 
pages  of  an  average  romance." — Carlisle  Journal. 

"  Amazingly    comprehensive    and    definite ;    the    book    has  the 


further   merit    of    being    written    in    a   pleasantly   colloquial   and 
unaffected  style." — Neivcastle  Journal. 

"  Admirable  alike  in  its  method  and  classification,  in  its  vast 
comprehensiveness,  in  the  research  and  knowledge  it  displays.  .  .  . 
The  non-scientific  reader  will  find  here  a  book  treating  of  a  fascinat- 
ing  subject  in  a  manner  that  has  a  strange  magnetism." — Hexham 
Courant. 

"A  breath  of  the  moor  and  a  whiff  of  the  sea  exhale  from  these 
pages  of  vivid  and  picturesque  description.  .  .  .  The  author  is 
steeped,  so  to  speak,  in  knowledge  of  the  technique  of  wildfowling. 
The  spirited  pen-and-ink  sketches,  by  the  author  himself,  are 
excellent." — Glasgoiv  Dally  Herald. 

"Messrs.  Gurney  &  Jackson,  London,  have  published  a  second 
edition  of  a  work  which,  while  appealing  specially  to  ornithologists, 
is  capable  of  holding  the  fascinated  interest  of  a  much  wider  reading 
public;  its  general  scheme,  indeed,  is,  as  the  author  justly  claims 
in  the  preface,  of  a  character  well  calculated  to  hold  the  attention 
of  the  average  reader  who  possesses  some  love  for  the  'out-bye' 
country  and  its  bird-life  in  their  wilder  aspects.  The  whole  book, 
in  its  fine  and  lucid  descriptions  of  bird-life  on  moorland  and  sea,  now 
redolent  of  sweet  country  breezes,  now  smacking  of  the  glorious  ozone, 
is  a  storehouse  of  perfect  delight  to  the  lover  of  nature  who  possesses 
even  only  a  superficial  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Chajjman's  winged 
friends.  Altogether  *  Bird-Life  of  the  Borders '  is  a  veritably  en- 
trancing book ;  and  it  has  been  right  worthily  clothed  by  Messrs. 
Gurney  k  Jackson  in  a  form  which,  from  every  standpoint,  is  as 
admirable  a  specimen  of  modern  publication  as  one  could  desire." — • 
Morpeth  Herald. 

"  To  those  who  have  never  read  Mr.  Abel  Chapman's  delightfully 
informative  volume  entitled  '  Bird-Life  of  the  Borders,'  an  oppor- 
tunity is  now  presented,  as  a  new  revised  edition  has  been  issued 
by  Messrs.  Gurney  &.  Jackson  at  14*;.  net.  As  a  faithful  record 
of  bird-life  on  moorland  and  sea  we  know  of  no  more  interesting 
work  than  the  one  before  us,  and  the  whole  book  teems  with 
practical  notes  as  a  result  of  over  forty  years'  careful  observation. 
It  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  records  of  wild  life  ever  written,  and 
the  talented  author's  clever  sketches,  as  well  as  his  writing,  add  in 
no  small  measure  to  the  general  excellence  of  the  volume.  We 
never  remember  reading  a  book  with  so  much  pleasure  and  profit, 
and  we  fervently  wish  that  every  lover  of  Nature  was  as  observant 
as  Mr.  Chapman.  His  enthusiasm  for  wild  life  is  infectious,  but 
the  reader  must  read  this  really  delightful  book  for  himself  and 
judge  whether  we  overpraise  it  in  any  way.  It  is  a  model  of  keen 
observation  and  systematic  note-making,  and  might  be  emulated 
to  advantage  by  all  lovers  of  wild  life." — The  Naturalist's  Quarterly 
Review. 


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22645:5 


